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t.  FRANCESCO  PETRARCA  AND  THE 

P  REVOLUTION  OF  COLA  DI  RIENZO 


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FRANCESCO  PETRARCA  AND  THE 
REVOLUTION  OF  COLA  DI  RIENZO 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CHICAGO  PEESS 
CHICAGO,  ILLINOIS 

Hgents 
THE  BAKEE  &  TAYLOE  COMPANY 

NEW  TOBK 

THE  CAMBEIDGE  UNIVERSITY  PRESS 

LONDON  AND  EDINBDBOH 


^ 


FRANCESCO  PETRARCA 

AND  THE  REVOLUTION 
OF   COLA   DI  RIENZO 


BY 

MARIO  EMILIO  .^OSENZA,  PH.D. 

Instructor  in  Latin  in  the  College 
of  the  City  of  New  York 

Author  of  ^^  Official  Positions  after  the  Time 

of  Constantine" ;  '•'■  Petrarch's  Letters 

to  Classical  Authors" 

Translator  of  Pais'  ''''Ancient  Legends 
of  Roman  History" 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CHICAGO  PRESS 
CHICAGO,  ILLINOIS 


C7  ■ 


Copyright  1913  By 
The  University  of  Chicago 


All  Rights  Reserved 


Published  February  1913 


Composed  and  Printed  By 

The  University  ot  Chicago  Press 

Chicago,  Illinois,  U.S. A. 


To  my  Sister 
GIANNINA 


» 


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PREFACE 

The  present  volume  is  the  outcome  of  those 
notes  that  were  taken  during  the  preparation  of 
my  previous  work,  Petrarch's  Letters  to  Classical 
Authors  (see  op.  cit.,  p.  xiv).  In  the  pages 
which  are  now  offered  to  the  reader,  I  have 
endeavored  to  draw  a  picture  of  Petrarca  as  a 
statesman;  for  I  firmly  believe  that,  even  if 
Petrarca  had  never  sung  a  single  sonnet  in 
honor  of  Laura,  he  would  still  have  been  dear  to 
endless  generations  of  Italians  for  having  been 
the  first  real  Italian  patriot — a  man  whose 
horizon  was  not  bounded  by  narrow  party  lines, 
and  whose  heart,  throughout  his  three  score 
years  and  ten  of  busy  life,  was  wholly  devoted 
to  the  cause  of  Italia  una. 

It  is  evident  that  the  material  thus  offered  for 
research  study  was  too  abundant  to  be  included 
within  the  covers  of  a  single  volume.  In  fact, 
it  soon  became  necessary  to  concentrate  upon 
only  one  period  of  Petrarca's  political  activities, 
and  out  of  three  or  more  possible  choices,  I 
have  chosen  to  treat  of  Petrarca's  relations  with 
Cola  di  Rienzo.  The  reasons  for  this  choice  are 
such  as  would  have  appealed  most  strongly  to 


viii  PREFACE 

Petrarca  himself.  In  the  first  place,  Cola  and 
the  revolution  which  he  successfully  accom- 
plished were  more  nearly  connected  with  the 
City  of  the  Seven  Hills  than  were  the  Popes  or 
Charles  IV,  Emperor  of  the  Holy  Roman 
Empire;  secondly,  Petrarca's  relations  with 
Cola  form  a  unit,  a  story  that  is  easily  under- 
stood; and  thirdly,  this  story  practically 
constitutes  a  chapter  in  the  history  of  Rome 
during  the  Middle  Ages. 

The  material  of  the  present  volume  is  drawn 
chiefly  from  Petrarca's  letters,  from  the  ex- 
tremely important  correspondence  of  Cola  di 
Rienzo,  and  from  the  equally  important  archives 
of  the  Roman  church.  Nearly  all  the  material 
of  both  the  text  and  the  commentary  is  new 
to  the  English  language.  Such  passages  and 
portions  as  have  already  been  translated  into 
English  are  called  to  the  attention  of  the 
reader  in  the  notes,  where  also  criticism  and 
comment  thereon  will  be  found.  The  notes 
have  been  made  as  detailed  as  seemed  neces- 
sary, in  order  that  the  many  allusions  of 
Petrarca  might  become  perfectly  clear. 

As  formerly,  the  Latin  edition  and  the  com- 
plete Italian  translation  of  Petrarca's  letters, 
De  rebus  familiaribus  (both  by  Fracassetti), 


PREFACE  ix 

have  been  indispensable.  It  is  from  these 
editions  that  I  make  all  quotations  from  the 
letters.  The  volumes  of  the  former  work  are 
referred  to  by  Roman  numerals;  those  of  the 
latter,  by  Arabic  numerals.  Passages  from 
other  works  of  Petrarca  are  cited  from  the 
Basle  edition  of  the  Opera  omnia y  except  those 
from  the  De  remediis  utriusque  fortunaey  for 
which  the  1649  edition  has  been  used.  BibUcal 
quotations  have  been  taken  from  the  Vulgate 
and  from  the  Catholic  (Douay)  Version  of  the 
Bible,  for  the  convincing  reason  that  it  was 
from  a  Catholic  Bible  that  Petrarca  quoted, 
and  that  only  by  adopting  such  readings  do 
certain  passages  of  Petrarca's  correspondence 
become  clear.  All  other  titles  have  been 
abbreviated  in  such  manner  as  to  be  readily 
identified  by  consulting  the  Bibliography. 

One  departure  from  my  former  course  wiU  be 
noticed  in  the  following  pages,  namely,  the 
retention  in  this  volume  of  the  Italian  spelling 
of  Petrarca's  name.  The  contents  of  this 
volume  breathe  forth  such  an  atmosphere  of 
Rome  and  of  Italy,  and  the  poet  battles  and 
preaches  and  sings  with  such  inspiration  for  the 
pohtical  liberty  of  the  capital  of  the  Caesars 
and  for  the  re-estabhshment  of  the  ancient 


X  PREFACE 

imperium,  that  it  would  have  been  a  contra- 
diction to  refer  to  him  by  any  other  name  than 
Petrarca.  I  acknowledge  that  nothing  would 
have  pleased  me  more  than  to  cite  the  Canzone 
Spirto  Gentil  in  the  original  Italian,  which  gives 
much  of  the  fire  and  the  pathos  that  are  lost 
in  translation.  But,  considering  the  nature  of 
this  volume,  such  course  was  impossible. 

The  difficulties  of  preparing  this  volume  have 
been  greater  than  they  may  appear  at  first 
sight.  I  have  been  encouraged  throughout  by 
a  constant  interest  in  the  subject-matter  and 
by  an  increasing  love  for  the  patriot  Petrarca. 
I  now  ofifer  to  the  public  these  results  of  my 
labors,  hoping  that  it  too  may  be  stirred  by 
the  prematurely  national  efforts  of  Francesco 
Petrarca  and  of  Cola  di  Rienzo. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 

PAGE 

Beginning  of  acquaintance  between  Petrarca  and  Cola 
di  Rienzo  at  Avignon  in  1343.  (Letter:  to  Cola, 
App.  Liu.,  II;  Sine  Titulo,  VII,  written  at  Avignon 
and  assigned  to  the  year  1343.) i 

Notes 12 

CHAPTER  II 

Cola  becomes  Tribune.  Petrarca's  letter  of  exhor- 
tation to  Cola  and  to  the  Roman  people.  (Letter: 
Var.,  XL VIII,  Hortatoria,  written  at  Avignon  and 
assigned  to  June  24-27,  1347.) 14 

Notes 45 

CHAPTER  III 

Cola's  letter  acknowledging  receipt  of  Petrarca's 
Hortatoria.  (Letter:  Epistolario,  No.  XV,  dated 
Rome,  July  28,  1347-)        65 

Notes 68 

CHAPTER  IV 

Petrarca  describes  effect  produced  by  Cola's  letters  at 
papal  court  in  Avignon.  (Letter:  to  Cola,  Var., 
XXXVIII,  written  at  Avignon  and  assigned  to  July 
24-26,  1347.) 70 

Notes 76 

CHAPTER  V 

Beginning  of  estrangement  between  the  Tribune  and 
the  Curia.    Petrarca  sends  to  Cola  the  description 


xii  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

of  a  vision.    (Letter:  Var.,  XL,  written  at  Avignon 
and  assigned  to  August  21-25,  i347-)       ....      80 
Notes 88 

CHAPTER  VI 

Alarming  nature  of  Cola's  deeds,  and  strained  relations 
between  Cola  and  the  Ciu^ia.  Petrarca  leaves 
Avignon  and  repairs  to  Vaucluse,  (Letter:  to 
Cola,  Var.,  XLII,  written  at  Vaucluse  and  assigned 
to  August  27-31,  1347.) 97 

Notes 105 

CHAPTER  Vn 

Eclogue  5,  composed  by  Petrarca  at  Vaucluse,  and 

sent  to  Cola  together  with  Var.,  XLH     .     .     .     109 
Notes 118 

CHAPTER  Vni 

Coronation  of  Cola  on  August  15,  1347,  causing  open 
hostilities  between  Rome  and  Avignon.  Petrarca 
gives  vent  to  his  anger  and  indignation.  (Letter: 
to  Cola,  App.  Litt.,  VIII;  Sine  TUulo,  H,  written 
at  Vaucluse  and  assigned  to  first  week  of  Septem- 
ber, 1347.) 126 

Notes 142 

CHAPTER  DC 

Disturbing  reports  from  Avignon  reach  Petrarca  at 
Vaucluse.  He  unburdens  his  soul  by  writing  to 
Cola.  (Letter:  App.  Litt.,  IV;  Sine  Titulo,  III, 
written  at  Vaucluse  and  assigned  to  first  week  of 
September,  1347.) 153 

Notes 157 


CONTENTS  xiii 

CHAPTER  X 

PAOB 

Petrarca  leaves  Vaucluse  to  rejoin  Cola  at  Rome. 
Cola's  entangling  alliance  with  Himgarian  king,  and 
decisive  battle  outside  Porta  S.  Lorenzo.  Petrarca 
receives  disturbing  news  of  Cola's  actions,  and 
writes  him  a  letter  of  mingled  exhortation  and 
rebuke.  (Letter:  Fam.,  VII,  7,  dated  Genoa, 
November  29,  1347.) 161 

Notes 188 

CHAPTER  XI 

Cola's  fall.  The  Black  Death  and  the  Jubilee  of  1350. 
Commission  of  four  Cardinals  appointed  by  Pope 
Clement  VI  to  reform  government  of  Rome.  Com- 
mission applies  to  Petrarca  for  advice,  and  the  Poet 
avails  himself  of  opportunity.  (Letter:  Fam.,  XI, 
16,  dated  November  18,  1351.) 193 

Notes 218 

CHAPTER  Xn 

Petrarca  sends  second  letter  to  Commission  of  four 
Cardinals.  (Letter:  Fam.,  XI,  17,  dated  Novem- 
ber 24,  1351.) 228 

Notes 232 

CHAPTER  Xm 

Cola  reaches  Prague,  the  capital  of  Charles  IV. 
The  Emperor  sends  him  to  Pope  Clement  VI.  A 
few  days  later,  Petrarca  writes  to  Francesco  Nelli, 
describing  arrival  of  Cola  and  strange  rumors 
spread  concerning  him.  (Letter:  Fam.,  XIII,  6, 
dated  Vaucluse,  August  10,  1352.) 233 

Notes 257 


xiv  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XIV 

PAGE 

Petrarca  writes  to  the  Romans,  urging  them  to  insist 
on  Cola's  liberation.  (Letter:  App.  LitL,  I;  Sine 
Titulo,  IV,  assigned  to  a  date  not,  perhaps,  earlier 
than  the  middle  of  September,  1352.)     ....     274 

Notes 297 

CHAPTER  XV 

Conclusion,  briefly  following  in  Petrarca's  life  the 
thin  thread  of  his  blasted  hopes  in  Cola  di  Rienzo    307 

Bibliography 325 


CHAPTER  I 

On  May  19,  1342,  Clement  VI  was  crowned 
Pope  at  Avignon.  His  predecessors,  Popes 
John  XXII  and  Benedict  XII  had  held  out  to 
the  Romans  hopes  that  had  never  been  realized. 
When,  therefore,  Clement  ascended  the  Sacred 
Chair,  the  hopeful  Romans  dispatched  an 
embassy  to  their  new  overlord.  This  embassy, 
consisting  of  eighteen  men  and  representing  the 
three  classes  of  the  Roman  people,  was  headed 
by  Stefano  Colonna  the  Younger,  Francesco  di 
Vico,  and  Lello  di  Pietro  di  Stefano  dei  Cosecchi 
(or  Tosetti).  With  all  due  humility,  the 
ambassadors  made  the  following  three  requests: 
that  the  newly  crowned  Pope  should  deign  to 
assume  the  supreme  power  over  Rome;  that  he 
should  withdraw  from  Avignon  and  restore  the 
Church  of  Rome  to  its  rightful  seat  in  the  city 
by  the  Tiber;  and,  thirdly,  that  he  should 
decree  the  celebration  of  the  Jubilee  every  fifty, 
instead  of  one  hundred,  years.  The  Pontiff 
accepted  the  rule  thus  offered  to  him,  granted 
for  Rome's  financial  advantage  the  request 
concerning  the  Jubilee,  but  alleged  that  the 
Roman  church  could  not  be  restored  to  Rome 


2  F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

just  at  that  time  because  of  the  unpleasant 
relations  between  England  and  France. 
Petrarca  himself  addressed  a  poetic  epistle  to 
the  Pope,  likewise  urging  upon  him  a  return  to 
Rome.  But  it  was  all  in  vain,  and  the  only 
tangible  result  of  this  audience  was  the  appoint- 
ment by  Clement  VI  of  two  nobles  to  represent 
him  in  the  Roman  Senate. 

The  mediaeval  Romans  Kved  eternally  in  an 
atmosphere  of  war.  With  the  nominal  ruler 
living  a  life  of  ease  and  of  splendor  on  the  banks 
of  the  Rhone,  the  real  control  of  the  city  lay  in 
the  hands  of  the  Colonna  and  of  the  Orsini, 
those  powerful  baronial  houses  that  made  the 
city  itself  the  spoils  of  their  factional  strife,  and 
that,  by  their  daily  encounters,  helped  to  hasten 
the  depopulation  of  the  Urbs.  Either  in 
December,  1342,  or  in  January,  1343,  a  revolt 
resulted  in  the  overthrow  of  the  Senators,  and 
in  placing  the  governing  power  in  the  hands  of 
the  Thirteen  Good  Men,  who  ruled  in  the  name 
of  the  Pope.  A  second  embassy  was  forthwith 
dispatched  to  Avignon,  in  order  to  acquaint 
the  Pope  with  these  changes  and  to  justify  the 
revolt.  The  Romans  chose  as  leader  of  this  em- 
bassy the  lowly  bom  Cola  di  Rienzo,  who  was 
endowed,  however,  with  wonderful  powers  of 


PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO  3 

oratory.  A  kind  reception  awaited  the  envoys; 
and  when  the  requests  of  the  Quirites  were  made 
known  to  the  Pontiff,  the  same  answers  were 
given  as  on  the  occasion  of  the  former  embassy. 
It  was  during  the  course  of  this,  his  first 
poHtical  mission,  that  Cola  di  Rienzo  met 
Francesco  Petrarca.  These  two  characters 
stand  forth  prominently  in  the  history  of  the 
mediaeval  mind.  Standing  upon  the  very  thin 
line  separating  the  old  from  the  new,  and 
born  centuries  ahead  of  their  time,  they  only 
half-consciously  divined  the  irresistible  forces 
that  were  springing  into  being.  The  conflict 
between  that  which  their  instinct  only  imper- 
fectly revealed  to  them  and  that  which  they 
knew  to  have  inherited  from  the  narrow  and 
scholastic  ages  behind  them  must  have  been 
bitter  indeed.  It  was  this  conflict  that  caused 
those  inconsistencies  both  in  Cola  and  in 
Petrarca  upon  which  critics  so  fondly  pounce. 
But  no  one  could  have  escaped  the  accumulated 
heredity  of  centuries;  and  to  but  few  has  an 
inscrutable  Power  granted  even  an  unconscious 
understanding  of  the  future.  The  workings  of 
these  world-movements  in  the  hearts  of  Cola 
and  of  Petrarca  inevitably  produced  those  well- 
known  extremes  of  passion,  and  made  them  at 


4  F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

one  moment  sing  the  psalms  of  David  and  at 
the  next  voice  the  thunder  of  Isaias. 

Cola,  the  son  of  an  inn-keeper,  delighted 
especially  in  the  writings  of  the  ancient  his- 
torians of  the  City.  To  this  he  added  a  passion- 
ate fondness  for  deciphering  the  time-worn  and 
neglected  inscriptions  which  he  beheld  on  every 
side.  There  gradually  grew  up  before  him  the 
image  of  an  ideal  Rome,  a  Rome  powerful  and 
revered  as  in  the  days  of  Augustus,  peaceful 
and  not  rent  by  the  foreign  barons  of  his  day. 
It  is  possible  that  Cola  was  present  on  the 
occasion  of  Petrarca's  coronation  on  the  Capitol 
in  1 34 1.  If  so,  we  can  well  imagine  the  impres- 
sion which  that  Easter  spectacle  must  have 
made  upon  his  poetic  nature.  Well  may  he 
have  thought  it  a  vision  of  the  ancient  days,  a 
wondrous  staging  of  a  page  from  his  beloved 
Livy.  As  for  Petrarca,  the  coronation  for 
which  he  had  so  ardently  sighed  formed  but  an 
interlude  in  the  composition  of  his  epic  the 
Africa.  It  was  the  reputation  of  this  unseen 
and  unpublished  poem  that  had  so  influenced 
King  Robert  of  Sicily  during  his  examination 
of  Petrarca  at  Naples;  and  to  this  poem  it  was 
that  Petrarca  returned  with  redoubled  vigor 
after  his  triumph  upon  the  Capitol. 


PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO  5 

We  must  here  emphasize  a  well-known  fact. 
The  Africa,  whose  hero  was  P.  CorneHus  Scipio, 
was  meant  by  Petrarca  to  be  the  national  epic 
of  Italy.  His  object  was  to  offer  to  the  ItaHan 
world  a  mediaeval  Aeneid.  He  felt  with  all  the 
deep  feeling  of  a  patriotic  ItaHan  the  full  force 
of  the  Vergilian  behest  to  the  Augustan  Romans : 
to  dictate  the  conditions  of  peace,  to  spare  the 
conquered,  and  to  subdue  the  proud.  Petrarca 
wept  at  the  disunited  condition  of  his  Italy;  at 
the  internecine  strife  of  the  princes  and  poten- 
tates; but,  above  all,  at  the  presence  of  the 
foreign  barbarians,  who  ruthlessly  trod  under 
foot  the  ashes  of  their  former  conquerors.  Can 
we  wonder  that  Scipio  Africanus  had  become 
the  special  object  of  Petrarca's  veneration? 
Had  not  Scipio,  at  a  most  critical  time,  stood 
forth  as  the  champion  of  his  country's  liberty  ? 
Had  he  not  roused  the  drooping  spirits  of  the 
Romans?  Had  he  not  driven  from  Italic  soil 
the  most  dreaded  of  all  Rome's  countless 
enemies,  Hannibal  ? 

It  was  these  two  men  then,  thus  enamored  of 
Rome's  ancient  grandeur  and  to  an  equal 
degree  despondent  at  her  present  widowed  state; 
thus  inflamed  with  thoughts  of  her  future  and 
with  vague — very  vague — dreams  of  a  restora- 


6  F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

tion;  it  was  these  two  men  whom  chance  or 
destmy  brought  face  to  face  in  the  papal 
palace  at  Avignon. 

It  matters  not  whether  Petrarca  met  Cola  on 
the  first,  or  on  the  second,  or  on  any  other 
particular  day  of  the  latter's  stay  at  Avignon. 
But  we  can  readily  conceive  of  their  desire  for 
a  mutual  acquaintance.  Cola  must  surely 
have  known  of  Petrarca's  presence  in  the 
capital  of  the  papacy.  The  Roman  envoy's 
eloquence,  his  portrayal  of  the  ruined  state  of 
the  Queen  of  Cities,  of  the  fallen  shrines  and 
sanctuaries,  of  the  more  than  Romulus  and 
Remus  hatred  of  the  Orsini  for  the  Colonna,  of 
the  arrogant  barbarians  swaggering  about  on 
the  soil  that  had  been  drenched  with  the  blood 
of  martyrs — ^in  a  word.  Cola's  dreams  and  hopes, 
of  a  "single,  harmonious,  peaceful,  holy,  and 
indissoluble  Union" — dreams  and  hopes  that 
were  premature  by  fully  five  centuries — must 
have  struck  a  more  than  responsive  chord  in  the 
breast  of  Petrarca.  We  may  well  fancy  that  to 
the  Poet  Laureate,  Cola  must  have  appeared  as 
the  reincarnation  of  his  hero  Scipio  Africanus, 
who  first  freed  ItaHc  soil  from  the  foot  of  the 
barbarian;  or  as  the  embodiment  of  the 
Dantesque   Greyhound,  who  was  to  be  the 


PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO  7 

savior  of  that  low  Italy  "on  whose  account  the 
maid  Camilla  died." 

Clement  VI  was  at  once  fascinated  by  the 
eloquence  of  Cola,  but  not  so  the  powerful  and 
influential  cardinal  Giovanni  Colonna.  It 
would  have  been  superhuman  for  the  cardinal 
to  maintain  a  passive  attitude  when  he  heard 
Cola's  fiery  denunciations  of  the  barons  at  Rome, 
of  whom  the  Colonna  formed  so  great  a  part. 
His  influence  with  the  Pope  was  so  great  that 
Cola  fell  into  disfavor,  finally  re-entering  the 
good  graces  of  his  Holiness  through  Petrarca's 
intervention.  Petrarca,  we  must  recoUect,  was 
an  intimate  member  of  the  cardinal's  household. 
The  first  beginnings,  therefore,  of  that  coldness 
between  him  and  the  house  of  the  Colonna — a 
coldness  which  was  to  reach  its  climax  with  the 
battle  of  November  20,  1347 — must  be  ascribed 
to  this  period  of  Cola's  disfavor. 

Petrarca's  meetings  with  Cola  must  have 
been  many  and  long.  It  is  quite  possible  that 
the  more  learned  poet  recited  to  the  youthful 
envoy  passages  from  his  epic  of  liberation — 
passages  that  he  had  scrupulously  guarded  from 
the  world;  that  he  stored  the  mind  of  Cola 
with  countless  examples  of  Roman  greatness 
and  patriotism  drawn  from  the  pages  of  his 


8         F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

adored  classics;  and  that  Cola's  own  ideas, 
vague  and  misty  at  first,  may  have  taken 
more  definite  shape  from  these  inspired  con- 
versations. Indeed,  the  world  of  today  knows 
Petrarca's  ideas  and  dreams  so  well,  and  knows 
Cola's  future  actions  so  thoroughly,  that  it 
would  be  an  easy  and  pleasant  task  to  recon- 
struct some  of  these  conversations.  But  as 
usual,  Petrarca  has  anticipated  the  ideas  of 
future  generations.  His  meetings  with  Cola 
became,  it  seems,  somewhat  more  guarded  than 
at  first;  they  were  wont  to  meet  somewhere 
beyond  the  confines  of  the  papal  residence,  and 
would  saunter  through  the  noisy,  crowded 
streets  of  Avignon,  earnestly  discussing  the  ways 
and  means  for  the  realization  of  their  hopes. 

On  one  such  occasion,  having  perhaps  prayed 
together  in  the  Church  of  St.  Agricola  to  obtain 
that  comfort  of  which  both  their  distracted 
hearts  were  so  sadly  in  need,  they  issued  forth; 
and,  standing  outside  the  portals  of  that  church, 
they  engaged  in  an  inspired  conversation  that 
may  have  owed  its  origin  to  the  strengthening 
of  their  belief  through  the  devout  prayer  just 
offered.  This  conversation,  and  the  feelings 
which  it  subsequently  aroused  in  Petrarca,  the 
poet  himself  relates  in  the  following  letter. 


PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO  9 

TO  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

(App.  Liu.,  II;  Sine  Tittdo,  VII) 

As  I  recall  that  most  inspired  and  earnest 
conversation  in  which  we  engaged  two  days  ago, 
while  standing  before  the  portals  of  that  famous 
and  ancient  sanctuary,  I  glow  with  zeal  to  such 
degree  as  to  deem  thy  words  the  words  of  an 
oracle  issuing  forth  from  the  innermost  recesses 
of  that  temple/  I  seem  to  have  been  hearken- 
ing to  a  god,  not  to  a  man.  Thou  didst 
bemoan  the  present  conditions — nay,  the  very 
fall  and  ruin  of  the  RepubUc — in  words  of  such 
divine  inspiration,  and  thou  didst  probe  our 
wounds  with  the  shafts  of  thy  eloquence  to  such 
depths  that  whenever  the  sound  and  the  mean- 
ing of  thy  words  recur  to  the  memory,  tears 
leap  to  my  eyes,  and  grief  again  grips  my  soul.' 
My  heart  was  all  inflamed  as  thou  spakest. 
But  now,  as  I  recall  the  words  and  ponder  upon 
them,  as  I  anticipate  the  future,  I  melt  into 
tears — not  womanish,  but  manly  and  bold — 
tears  which,  if  the  occasion  ofifered,  would  dare 
accomplish  some  patriotic  deed  and  would 
gush  forth  in  the  defense  of  justice,  as  befits  a 
man.  And  therefore,  though  I  had  often  com- 
muned with  thee,  since  that  day  I  have  done 


lO       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

so  more  than  ever.  Despair  seizes  me  one 
moment,  hope  the  next;  and,  with  my  soul 
wavering  between  the  two,  often  I  murmur  to 
myseK:  "Oh!  if  ever  ....  oh!  if  it  only 
occurr  in  my  day  ....  oh!  if  it  were  only 
granted  me  to  share  in  so  noble,  so  glorious  an 
enterprise!" 

Thereupon  I  am  wont  to  turn  to  that  Cross 
which  is  my  solace,  and  exclaim  with  sad  tones 
and  moistened  eyes: 

O  Christ,  too  good  art  thou  and  overmerciful. 
What  means  this  ?  Arise,  why  sleepest  thou,  O  Lord  ? 
Arise  and  cast  us  not  off  to  the  end.  Why  turnest  thou 
thy  face  away?  and  forgettest  our  want  and  our 
trouble  P^  O  Lord,  our  Defender,  look  thou  upon  us.'' 
Behold  our  sufferings  and  the  causes  thereof.  Behold 
what  deeds  are  done  by  thine  enemies  under  the  shield 
of  thy  name.  Behold,  and  take  vengeance.  If  not, 
succour  thou  us  before  the  power  of  the  deadly  poison 
wastes  away  the  life  of  our  body,  before  we  are  crushed 
by  the  insufferable  weight  of  evils. 

What  dost  thou,  O  Salvation  of  them  that  trust  in 
theeps  What  plannest  thou,  Saviour  P  why  tarriestP 
How  long  wilt  thou  avert  thy  gazeP  How  long  wilt 
thou  remain  untouched  by  our  trials,  how  long  wilt 
thou  refrain  from  putting  an  end  to  such  great  distress  P 
Dost  thou  not  see  our  woes,  thou  whom  neither  the 
vast  expanse  of  Heaven  can  escape,  nor  the  unfathom- 
able depths,  nor  the  drops  of  the  ocean,  nor  the  leaves 


PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO         ii 

of  the  forest,  nor  the  sands  of  the  sea,  nor  the  number 
of  the  stars,  nor  the  multitude  of  living  creatures, 
nor  the  countless  plants  and  shrubs?  Are  we,  then, 
become  hateful  to  thee,  we  whom  thou  wert  wont  to 
love  so  ?  we,  for  love  of  whom  thou,  our  Lord  ruling 
in  Heaven,  didst  descend  to  earth,  and,  even  as  unto 
mortal  man,  didst  suffer  the  Cross  ?  Dost  thou,  per- 
chance, both  see  us  and  cherish  us,  but  art  held  back 
by  thy  lack  of  power?  But  art  thou  not  Omnipo- 
tent? And  if  not,  what  hope  remains?  Does  the 
power  of  thine  enemies  make  thee  to  fear?  But  not 
yet  has  the  insolent  pride  of  our  age  made  men  equal 
to  their  Creator.^  Or,  finally,  is  it  mercy  that  checks 
the  thunderbolt  of  thy  judgment?  But  see  to  it,  O 
infallible  Judge,  see  to  it  that  in  sparing  the  few  thou 
destroy  not  the  many.  See  to  it  that  thy  mercy, 
extended  to  the  wicked,  prove  not  cruelty  to  the  upright 
and  destruction  to  the  innocent. 

But  what  do  I  say,  insignificant  mortal  that  I  am! 
Who  am  I  thus  to  remonstrate  with  thee?  We 
intrust  to  thee  ourselves  and  all  our  belongings,  O 
Lord.  Thy  will  be  done,  thou  who  didst  create  us. 
But  do  thou  remember  that  our  frailty  cannot  longer 
endure  beneath  the  weight  of  such  great  calamities. 
Bring  us  thy  timely  aid,  while  life  still  remains  in  us, 
that,  if  thou  permittest  us  to  die,  thou  mayest  not  be 
obliged  to  resurrect  those  whom  thou  mightest  have 
spared.  Come,  O  our  Hope.  Make  haste,  make 
haste  to  deliver  us.^  This  is  our  daily  prayer.  And  we 
beseech  thee,  O  Lord,  either  destroy  the  countless  evils 
of  this  world,  or  destroy  thou  the  world  itself.* 


12        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

NOTES 

1.  The  Church  of  St.  Agricola,  at  Avignon.  While 
the  two  enthusiasts  were  thus  conversing  on  the  ancient 
grandeur  and  the  present  widowed  state  of  the  Queen 
of  Cities,  we  can  readily  picture  the  passing  to  and  fro 
of  the  populace  "on  sordid  gain  intent"  {la  turba  al  vil 
guadagno  intesa:  sonnet,  La  gola  e'l  sonno),  among 
whom,  perhaps,  as  Bartoli  says  {Storia,  VII,  ii6),  there 
may  have  mingled  some  bishop  or  some  cardinal, 
cupidinis  veteranus,  Baccho  sacer  et  Veneri,  non  arniatus 
sed  togatus  et  pileatus.  According  to  Carducci,  Rime 
di  F.  P.  sopra  argomenti  storici,  morali  e  diver  si,  p.  157, 
the  Latin  quotation  is  from  the  letter  Sine  Titulo, 
XVIII,  which,  in  the  Basle  edition  of  1581,  is  numbered 
XVI  (see  Opera,  p.  731). 

2.  If  Petrarca  deemed  the  words  of  Cola  to  be 
divinely  inspired,  it  is  certain  that  his  own  words 
must  have  made  the  same  impression  upon  the  fiery 
imagination  of  the  scholarly  Cola  di  Rienzo,  the 
more  so  that  Petrarca  was  full  of  the  subject  of  his 
Africa,  which  he  had  just  completed.  Probably  Cola 
was  the  first  person  to  whom  Petrarca,  carried  away 
by  the  enthusiasm  of  the  moment,  recited  in  abundance 
pertinent  verses  from  his  epic,  verses  which  were  so 
eagerly  sought  after  by  the  learned,  but  which  Petrarca 
so  constantly  and  so  jealously  refused  to  make  known. 
The  poet's  relation  to  his  younger  contemporary, 
therefore,  and  his  never-failing  words  of  advice  give 
good  ground  for  likening  him  to  the  nymph  Egeria 
(Brizzolara,  Studi  storici,  XIV,  96,  in  the  note  carried 
over  from  p.  95). 


PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO  13 

3.  Ps.  43:23-24  (A.V.  44:23-24). 

4.  Fracassetti  continues  to  print  these  words  in 
italics,  as  if  they  were  still  a  quotation  from  the  Bible. 

5.  Petrarca's  words  (Frac,  III,  p.  505):  "Quid  agis 
in  te  sperantium  solus, "  are  a  reminiscence  of  Ps.  16:7 
(A.V.  17:7):  ^^qui  salvos  fads  sperantes  in  te." 

6.  With  this  compare  the  statement  made  in  the 
following  letter:  "beggarly  thieves  judge  themselves 
unpardonably  ofifended  if  they  be  not  addressed  as 
gods." 

7.  Again  a  loose  quotation  of  Ps.  69:2  (A.V.  70:1). 

8.  It  is  reasonable  to  assume  that  this  impassioned 
language  reproduces  the  tone  of  the  conversations 
between  Petrarca  and  Cola  di  Rienzo.  Indeed,  the 
many  remonstrances  of  the  poet  may  be  readily 
understood  as  reflecting  those  of  the  young  patriot  and 
ambassador  from  Rome. 


CHAPTER  II 

Cola  di  Rienzo  returned  to  Rome  after  Easter 
of  the  year  1344.  Clement  VI,  realizing  how 
valuable  an  aid  Cola  might  prove  to  be,  had 
gladly  complied  with  his  request,  and,  on  April 
13,  1344,  had  appointed  him  notary  of  the 
civic  camera. 

We  shall  not  give  here  the  history  of  Cola. 
We  shall  merely  mention  the  growing  power 
of  the  Pope's  protege;  his  antagonism  to  the 
barons  who  scoffed  at  his  rhetoric,  which  they 
were  pleased  to  despise  as  the  ravings  of  a 
madman;  the  allegorical  paintings  and  the 
fanciful  interpretations  with  which  he  endeav- 
ored to  reawaken  in  the  Roman  people  a  sense 
of  their  ancient  and  inalienable  rights.  By 
these  means  Cola  sought  to  attach  everyone  to 
his  cause;  and  when,  in  the  month  of  May, 
1347,  the  Roman  soldiers  under  Stefano  Colonna 
were  absent  from  the  city.  Cola  resolved  to  take 
advantage  of  the  opportunity.  After  hearing 
mass  in  the  Church  of  S.  Angelo  in  Pescheria 
on  the  morning  of  Sunday,  May  20,  1347,  he 
proceeded  to  the  Campidoglio,  addressed  the 
populace  with  that  eloquence  which  had  ever 

14 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  15 

proved  irresistible,  and  was  proclaimed  master 
of  the  City  of  the  Apostles. 

The  news  of  Cola's  peaceful  elevation  was  at 
once  carried  into  Provence.  It  startled  not  only 
the  Curia,  but,  to  an  even  greater  degree,  him 
who  might  be  designated  the  arch-conspirator 
with  Cola.  During  the  years  from  1344  to 
1347 — tedious  years  of  waiting  and  of  hoping 
— Petrarca  and  Cola  must  have  exchanged 
numberless  letters  on  the  subject  which  lay 
nearest  their  hearts.  Whatever  may  have  been 
Petrarca's  previous  solution  for  Rome's  diffi- 
culties, the  enthusiasm  engendered  by  the 
receipt  of  this  news  in  June,  1347,  swept  it  aside 
like  a  flood.  He  had  prayed  much,  and 
earnestly;  and  now  he  gave  himself  up  utterly 
to  the  great,  alluring  figure  that  had  suddenly 
appeared  above  the  Roman  horizon. 

It  is  doubtful  whether  in  June,  1347,  Petrarca 
had  an  exact  and  precise  knowledge  of  Cola's 
aims  and  purposes;  indeed  it  is  doubtful 
whether  these  were  clear  to  Cola  himself. 
Nevertheless,  with  the  characteristic  abandon 
of  impulsive  natures,  Petrarca  gave  free  rein  to 
his  overflowing  joy,  and  immediately  wrote  to 
Cola  a  letter  which  should  rather  be  called  a 
panegyric.     Indeed,  Baldelli  (p.  81)  does  not 


1 6        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

hesitate  to  pronounce  the  following  letter  the 
most  virile  and  most  eloquent  phiHppic  of 
modern  times.  It  is  a  psalm  that  declares  the 
supremacy  of  Rome.     It  is  a  hymn  to  liberty. 


TO    COLA    DI    RIENZO    AND    TO    THE 
ROMAN  PEOPLE 

(Var.,  XLVIII,  Hortatoria) 

I  am  somewhat  undecided,  O  noble  soul, 
whether  I  should  first  congratulate  thee  on  the 
achievement  of  such  great  glory,  or  the  citizens 
of  thy  rescued  city  for  thy  services  in  their 
behalf  and  for  the  most  happy  recovery  of  their 
liberty.  Both  do  I  congratulate  in  equal 
measure.  Both  together  shall  I  address,  nor 
shall  I  distinguish  in  my  words  those  whom  I  see 
so  inseparably  linked  by  fate  itself.  But  what 
terms  shall  I  employ  in  the  midst  of  such  sudden 
and  unhoped-for  joy  ?  With  what  vows  can  I 
fitly  set  forth  the  emotions  of  my  exultant  soul  ? 
Hackneyed  words  are  become  utterly  unfit; 
new  ones  I  dare  not  attempt.  I  shall  steal 
myself  away  from  my  occupations  for  a  short 
time;  and,  though  it  were  most  proper  to  robe 
my  thoughts  in  the  Homeric  dress,  lack  of 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  17 

leisure  obliges  me  to  present  them  in  a  more 
irregular  and  more  disordered  fashion. 

Liberty  stands  in  your  midst.  There  is 
nothing  dearer,  nothing  more  earnestly  to  be 
desired;  and  never  are  these  facts  more  clearly 
understood  than  when  liberty  is  lost.'  Enjoy 
this  great  boon,  this  realization  of  your  dreams 
of  many  years.  Rejoice  in  it,  but  do  so  with 
moderation,  with  discretion,  and  with  calm. 
Give  thanks  to  God,  the  Dispenser  of  such 
gifts,  who  has  not  yet  forgotten  his  most  Holy 
City,  and  could  no  longer  behold  enchained  in 
slavery  her  in  whom  he  had  placed  the  empire 
of  the  world.  Therefore,  ye  brave  men  and 
descendents  of  brave  men,  if  sane  thinking  has 
reasserted  itself  together  with  liberty,  let  each 
one  of  you  choose  death  itself  to  the  loss  of 
liberty.  Without  liberty  life  is  mockery.  Keep 
your  past  servitude  constantly  before  your  eyes. 
In  this  way,  unless  I  err,  your  present  liberty 
will  be  somewhat  dearer  to  you  than  life  itself. 
In  this  way,  if  at  any  time  it  should  become 
necessary  to  part  with  the  one  or  the  other, 
there  will  be  no  one  (provided  a  drop  of  Roman 
blood  still  flows  in  his  veins)  who  wiU  not  prefer 
to  die  a  freeman  rather  than  to  live  a  slave. 
The  fish  which  has  once  slipped  from  the  barb 


i8        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

lives  in  constant  fear  of  whatever  stirs  among 
the  waters.  The  lamb  which  has  been  snatched 
from  the  jaws  of  the  wolves  trembles  at  the 
greyish  dogs,  even  from  a  distance.  The 
winged  creature  which  has  extricated  itself 
from  the  bird-lime  dreads  even  the  harmless 
boughs.*  You,  too,  believe  me,  had  been 
baited  with  the  blandishments  of  vain  hopes; 
you,  too,  had  been  rendered  helpless  by  the 
tenacious  power  of  pernicious  habit;  you,  too, 
had  been  encircled  by  bands  of  famishing 
wolves. 

Consider  all  things  with  minds  alert.  Make 
sure  that  whatever  you  plan,  whatever  you  do, 
savor  of  liberty.  Let  all  your  cares  and  vigils  be 
directed  to  this  one  end;  let  all  your  deeds  tend 
thereto.  Whatsoever  is  achieved  with  other 
purpose,  esteem  it  an  irreparable  loss  of  time — a 
delusion  and  a  snare.  Drive  from  your  hearts 
the  ill-deserved  love  which,  through  a  long 
subjection,  you  may  have  conceived  for  your 
tyrants.  Expel  all  memory  of  this  unworthy 
affection.  Even  the  slave  bends  the  neck  to 
his  haughty  master  for  the  time  being,  and 
the  caged  bird  makes  sweet  music  for  its 
jailer.  But  the  former  will  throw  off  his 
shackles  when  the  occasion  offers;   and  if  an 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  19 

outlet  be  given,  the  latter  will  take  wing  with 
eager  flight. 

O  most  illustrious  citizens,  you  have  been 
living  as  slaves — you  whom  all  the  nations  were 
wont  to  serve.  Though  kings  were  wont  to 
kneel  at  your  feet,  you  have  lain  passive 
beneath  the  tyranny  of  a  few.  But  that  which 
makes  the  cup  of  grief  and  of  shame  full  to 
overflowing  is  the  thought  that  you  have  had  as 
tyrants  strangers  and  lords  of  foreign  birth. 
Enumerate  the  ravishers  of  your  honor,  the 
plunderers  of  your  fortunes,  the  destroyers  of 
your  liberty.  Bethink  ye  of  their  separate 
origins.  The  valley  of  Spoleto  claims  this  one; 
the  Rhine,  or  the  Rhone,  or  some  obscure 
corner  of  the  world  has  sent  us  the  next.^  That 
one,  who  but  recently  was  led  in  the  triumph 
with  hands  fastened  behind  his  back,  has,  from 
a  captive,  suddenly  become  a  citizen;  nay,  not 
merely  a  citizen  but  a  tyrant.  Little  marvel  is 
it,  therefore,  if  to  such  as  these,  when  they 
meditate  upon  their  former  country,  on  the 
disgrace  of  their  own  former  slavery  and  on  the 
fields  drenched  with  their  life-blood,  the  city  of 
Rome,  its  glory  and  its  liberty,  yea,  the  very 
blood  which  flows  in  your  veins,  should  be  a 
source  of  hatred. 


20        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Much  more  do  I  marvel  at  this:  whence  it 
was  that  you,  armed  Romans  though  you  were, 
drew  your  long  patience,  or  whereupon  they 
based  their  insufferable  pride.  What  superior 
qualities  do  they  possess  that  they  should  be  so 
highly  self-complacent?  What  air  do  they 
breathe?  What  virtues  own?  No  group  of 
men  ever  existed  who  were  more  sadly  lacking 
in  these.  Is  their  pride  based  on  their  over- 
abundant wealth,  which  can  never  appease 
their  hunger  except  it  be  attended  with  thoughts 
of  theft  and  of  plunder  ?  Is  it  based  on  their 
great  power,  which  will  cease  to  be  the  moment 
ye  assert  yourselves  men  ?  Is  it  possible  that 
they  can  glory  in  the  splendor  of  their  name  and 
origin,  or  in  their  purloined  and  perchance 
transient  abode  in  this  city?  What  grounds 
have  they  for  boasting  of  their  Roman  stock  ? 
And  yet  they  do  make  this  boast  most  impu- 
dently. They  have  falsely  declared  themselves 
Romans  for  so  long  a  time  that,  as  if  falsehood 
legalized  their  claims,  they  now  esteem  them- 
selves real  Romans.  Forsooth,  the  name  of 
Roman  citizens  has  become  low  and  base  in 
their  eyes.  They  no  longer  style  themselves 
Roman  citizens,  but.  Princes  of  the  Romans!  I 
scarcely  know  whether  such  pretensions  are  to 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  21 

be  received  with  laughter  or  with  tears.  But  I 
am  the  less  indignant  at  this,  when  I  behold 
that  they  have  lost  sight  of  even  their  human 
origin.  They  have  lately  reached  that  stage  of 
insanity  as  to  wish  themselves  to  be  considered 
gods  and  not  men. 

Oh  unutterable  shame!  In  that  very  city  in 
which  Caesar  Augustus,  the  ruler  of  the  world 
and  the  lawgiver  of  the  nations,  by  special  edict 
forbade  that  he  be  called  a  god,"  in  that  same 
city,  today,  beggarly  thieves  judge  themselves 
unpardonably  offended  if  they  be  not  addressed 
as  gods.  Oh  wretched  whirligig  of  fortune! 
Oh  unheard-of  change  of  times!  Let  us  dispel 
the  darkness,  let  us  remove  all  errors,  let  us 
attain  the  truth.  Whether  or  not  these  lords, 
who  are  entirely  devoid  of  reason,  are  worthy 
the  name  of  men,  let  those  decide  who  desire 
to  establish  hair-splitting  definitions  of  terms. 
Whether  they  are  to  be  your  masters,  since  it  is 
your  interests  that  are  at  stake,  I  leave  to  you 
yourselves  to  decide,  O  Romans,  provided  that 
you  keep  clearly  in  mind  that,  at  the  same  time 
and  in  the  same  city,  they  cannot  be  lords  and 
you  free  men.  The  one  fact,  however,  which  it 
is  within  my  province  to  decide  is  that  they 
surely  are  not  Romans.    Of  all  these  who,  as 


22        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

you  remember,  were  so  fastidious  of  their 
empty  titles  of  nobility,  no  matter  whence  they 
came,  no  matter  what  ill  wind  blew  them  hither 
or  what  barbarian  country  turned  them  loose, 
even  though  they  roamed  about  in  your 
Forum,  though  they  ascended  the  Capitol 
attended  by  hordes  of  armed  retainers,  and 
though  they  trod  (with  proud  step)  upon  the 
ashes  of  illustrious  Romans — of  aU  these,  I  say, 
there  was  not  one  who  was  not  an  alien.  As 
says  the  satirist,^  there  was  not  one  but  that 

with  whiten 'd  feet, 
Was  hawk'd  for  sale  so  lately  through  the  street. 

And  still  true  are  the  words  of  another  poet:** 

Our  war  no  interfering  kings  demands, 
Nor  shall  be  trusted  to  barbarian  hands: 
Among  ourselves  our  bonds  we  will  deplore. 
And  Rome  shall  serve  the  rebel  son  she  bore. 

Would  that  you  too  had  had  this  consolation  in 
your  misery,  that  you  were  slaves  to  but  one 
man,  whether  fellow-citizen  or  king,  and  not 
subject  to  many  foreign  robbers  at  once ! 

All  too  true  is  that  which  is  reported  to  have 
been  said  by  Hannibal,^  formerly  the  most 
renowned  enemy  of  the  Roman  race:  "It  is 
easier  to  censure  past  events  than  to  correct 
them." 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  23 

I  do  not  desire  to  goad  you  further,  nor  to 
reproach  you  with  bygones.  I  wish,  rather,  to 
offer  you  wherewith  to  screen  your  blushes. 
Even  your  ancestors  were  ruled  by  kings — and 
by  kings  who  were  not  always  of  Roman  origin, 
but  also,  at  one  time,  of  Sabine,  at  another  of 
Corinthian,  and  indeed  (if  we  are  to  believe 
tradition)  of  servile  origin.*  But  evU  fortune 
must  come  to  an  end  as  well  as  good  fortune. 
The  restorer  of  the  liberty  of  the  early  Romans 
and  the  restorer  of  your  liberty  were  aUke 
unexpected.  Each  age  produced  its  Brutus. 
There  are  now  three  of  the  name  of  Brutus 
celebrated  in  history.  The  first  is  he  who 
exiled  the  proud  Tarquin;  the  second,  he  who 
slew  Julius  Caesar;  the  third,  he  who  has 
visited  with  exile  and  with  death  the  tyrants  of 
our  own  age.  Our  third  Brutus,  then,  is  the 
equal  of  both  the  others,  in  that  in  his  own 
person  he  has  united  the  causes  of  the  double 
glory  which  the  other  two  divided  between 
them.  He  is,  however,  more  like  the  earlier 
Brutus  in  disguising  his  nature  and  in  concealing 
his  purpose.  Like  him  he  is  young  in  age,'  but 
of  a  far  different  temper;  and  if  he  assumed  the 
false  exterior  of  that  other  Brutus,  it  was  in 
order  that,  biding  his  time  beneath  this  false 


24       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

veil,  he  might  at  last  reveal  himself  in  his  true 
character — the  Uberator  of  the  Roman  People.^" 
To  the  valor  of  that  ancient  Brutus,  Livy, 
prince  of  historians,  bears  testimony;  to  that  of 
the  present  Brutus,  your  own  experience.  The 
former  Brutus  was  scorned  by  kings;  the  pres- 
ent, by  tyrants  to  whom  he  afterward  became 
a  source  of  fear.  You  have  read  of  the  former; 
with  your  own  eyes  you  have  seen  the  latter 
disdained  by  his  fellow-men,  men  who  deemed 
it  slavery  most  base  to  hve  under  the  same  laws 
with  their  fellow-citizens,  men  who  esteemed 
nothing  noble  except  it  were  unjust  and  arro- 
gant. They  spurned,  they  trampled  upon  the 
lowliness  of  this  man,  beneath  which,  however, 
a  great  soul  lay  concealed.  I  hereby  testify  in 
his  behalf  that  he  has  ever  had  close  at  heart 
the  end  which  he  has  at  last  attained."  But 
he  was  awaiting  a  favorable  opportunity.  The 
instant  this  presented  itself  he  was  quick  to 
take  advantage  of  it.  In  restoring  your  liberty, 
he  has  presented  you  with  as  great  a  boon  as  the 
elder  Brutus  did  present  his  fellow-citizens, 
when  he  held  on  high  the  dagger  which  he  had 
drawn  from  the  heart  of  Lucretia.  There  is 
this  difference,  however:  the  patience  of  the 
early  Romans  was  taxed  by  one  shameful  crime. 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  25 

whereas  yours  has  yielded  only  after  countless 
deeds  of  shame  and  countless  intolerable 
wrongs. 

These  barons  in  whose  defense  you  have  so 
often  shed  your  blood,  whom  you  have  nour- 
ished with  your  own  substance,  whom  you  have 
raised  to  affluence  to  the  detriment  of  the  state 
revenues,  these  barons  have  judged  you  un- 
worthy of  liberty.  They  have  gathered  the 
mangled  remnants  of  the  state  in  the  caverns 
and  abominable  retreats  of  bandits.  They 
have  felt  no  shame  that  their  crimes  were  known 
abroad.  They  have  been  restrained  neither  by 
pity  for  their  unhappy  country,  nor  by  love  for 
it.  They  have  irreverently  pillaged  the  temples 
of  the  Lord;  they  have  seized  the  strongholds, 
the  public  revenues,  and  the  regions  of  the  city. 
They  have  forcibly  divided  the  different  magis- 
tracies among  themselves — the  one  cause  in 
which  they  have  united  in  an  amazing  and 
ferocious  league  of  crime,  though  at  all  other 
times  restless  men  and  full  of  civil  discord,  and 
disagreeing  entirely  in  their  plans  and  conduct 
of  life.  And  lately,  neither  commiseration  nor 
pity  for  their  unhappy  city  has  prevented  them 
from  venting  their  rage  upon  the  bridges'^  and 
the  walls  of  the  city  and  upon  the  undeserving 


26        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

stones.  In  fine,  after  the  palaces  of  ancient 
Rome  had  sunk  into  ruin,  either  through  age  or 
the  hand  of  man,  palaces  which  were  once  the 
homes  of  noble  Romans;  after  the  triumphal 
arches  had  been  dismantled,  arches  which,  per- 
haps, commemorated  the  conquest  of  the 
barbarians'  ancestors;  these  haughty  barons 
have  not  been  ashamed  to  seek  filthy  lucre  in 
the  base  sale  of  the  fragments  that  had  sur- 
vived the  lapse  of  ages  and  the  barons'  own 
imgodhness.^^  And  oh  my  present  grief!  oh 
sin  unpardonable!  It  is  with  your  marble 
columns,  O  Romans,  with  the  porticoes  of  your 
churches,  to  which  but  recently  the  most  devout 
believers  hastened  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe, 
it  is  with  the  statues  pilfered  from  your  sepul- 
chers,  in  which  the  sacred  ashes  of  your  fathers 
rested,  it  is  with  these  that  (to  leave  other 
things  unmentioned)  indolent  Naples  is  being 
adorned!^"*  Gradually  the  ruins  themselves 
will  be  no  more — eloquent  memorials  of  the 
greatness  of  the  ancients.  And  you,  so  many 
thousands  of  brave  men,  you  have  not  uttered  a 
syllable  of  protest  in  the  face  of  a  few  free- 
booters rioting  about  as  if  in  a  captured  city. 
You  have  been  not  even  slaves,  but  as  so  many 
sheep.    You    kept    your    peace    while    your 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  27 

common  mother  was  being  torn  asunder. 
Small  wonder,  then,  that  they  drew  lots  for  the 
distribution  of  plunder! 

We  marvel  and  are  indignant  that  disasters 
such  as  these  should  have  befallen  peaceful 
Athens;  that  she  should  have  been  stripped  of 
her  marks  of  honor,  bereft  of  her  illustrious 
children,  and  subjected  to  the  rule  of  the  Thirty 
Tyrants.  But  that  this  could  have  come  to 
pass  in  the  city  of  Rome,  the  conqueror  of  cities 
and  the  mistress  of  the  world,  even  now  exalted 
and  ennobled  as  the  seat  of  the  Empire  and  the 
home  of  the  Holy  See;  that  Rome  could  remain 
subject  to  the  lusts  and  the  caprices  of  tyrants 
only  slightly  more  numerous  than  those  who 
held  sway  at  Athens  (and  perchance  even  fewer 
in  number) — that  such  things  could  be,  no  one, 
up  to  this  day,  had  considered  sufficient  cause 
for  righteous  indignation  and  displeasure.  Who 
of  your  tyrant  lords,  pray,  has  ever  been  con- 
tent with  mere  servile  obedience  on  your  part  ? 
Who  of  them  has  not  insisted,  rather,  on  sub- 
mission, despicable  and  vile?  Slaves  of  supe- 
rior ability,  even  the  beasts  of  the  field  are 
spared  by  their  owners,  not  out  of  consideration 
for  them,  but  because  of  the  loss  which  might  be 
incurred  through  harsh  treatment.    Have  you 


28        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

ever  been  spared?  What  baron  has  not  torn 
each  and  every  one  of  you  from  the  arms  of 
your  beloved  wives,  and  has  not  sent  you 
abroad  in  the  cold  and  darkness  of  a  winter's 
night,  when  the  rain  fell  in  torrents  and  the 
lightning  threatened,  exposing  you  to  the  perils 
of  death?  What  one  of  them  has  not  led 
you  in  his  train  over  snow-covered  peaks  and 
through  slimy  marshes,  as  if  you  had  been  so 
many  purchased  slaves  ? 

You  seem  to  have  awakened  at  last  from  your 
heavy  sleep.  If  you  feel  any  shame,  any  grief 
for  your  past  savage  condition  of  life,  sharpen 
your  intellects  and  be  ready  for  every  emer- 
gency. Do  not  suffer  any  of  the  rapacious 
wolves  whom  you  have  driven  from  the  fold  to 
rush  again  into  your  midst.  Even  now  they 
are  prowling  restlessly  around,  endeavoring 
through  fraud  and  deceit,  through  false  bowlings 
and  alluring  promises,  to  regain  an  entrance  to 
that  city  whence  they  were  violently  expelled. 
May  the  winds  sweep  away  the  omen,  which  is 
so  dire  that  my  soul  trembles  at  the  mere 
thought — ^how  much  more,  then,  at  a  possible 
realization !  But  unless  ye  take  care,  ....  do 
not  suppose  that  they  will  return  to  the  city  as 
famishing  as  they  left  it.     Their  hunger  will  be 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  29 

far  more  ravenous,  and  will  have  become  more 
and  more  furious  through  lapse  of  time.  They 
now  thirst  in  equal  degree  for  the  blood  of  both 
the  flock  and  the  shepherd.  Your  liberty  and 
the  glory  of  your  deliverer  they  reckon  as  their 
dishonor  and  disgrace.  Have  faith  in  your- 
selves. Rise  against  your  enemies.  They  will 
be  but  a  contemptible  handful  if  you  stand 
united. 

I  love  much,  hence  I  fear  much;  for  the  same 
reason  I  dare  much,  for  love  makes  bold  the 
weak.  I  know  full  well,  alas,  that  at  the  time 
of  the  early  Republic  (of  which  I  made  mention 
above)  there  were  some  who  favored  the 
tyranny  of  the  few  as  against  the  freedom  of  all. 
This  treason  was  committed,  moreover,  not  by 
men  of  obscure  birth,  but  by  most  illustrious 
youths,  indeed,  by  the  sons  of  the  Uberator 
himself,  youths  who  had  been  rendered  forgetful 
of  their  better  selves  by  the  bonds  of  inter- 
marriage, by  long  usage,  and  by  familiar 
intercourse.  All  were  punished  with  death  by 
the  father  who,  though  perhaps  wretched  in  his 
bereavement,  was  most  fortunate  in  the  pos- 
session of  a  courageous  heart;  and  who  deemed 
it  a  more  sacredly  appointed  duty  to  bereave 
himself  of  his  children  than  his  country  of 


30        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

liberty. 's  j  fe^r  the  recurrence  of  this  treason 
today,  the  more  so  that  the  hearts  of  men  are 
now  more  easily  tampered  with  and  more 
changeable.  I  fear  there  will  be  many,  yea, 
very  many,  who,  through  intermarriage  with 
the  tyrants  or  through  their  long  and  wretched 
period  of  servitude,  are  persuaded  that  the  cup 
of  the  slave  is  sweeter  than  the  abstinence 
of  the  freeman;  who  believe  that  they  have 
attained  a  great  and  noble  end  if  they  are  greeted 
on  the  streets,  or  are  summoned  hastily  by  their 
lords  and  plagued  with  lewd  commands;  who, 
finally,  famishing  and  filthy  parasites  that  they 
are,  seat  themselves  at  the  unrighteous  board  of 
their  tyrants  and  greedily  gulp  down  whatever 
escapes  the  capacious  guUets  of  their  lords. 
This,  and  nothing  else,  is  the  compensation  of 
these  unfortunates;  this  the  only  reward  for 
their  hazards  and  their  toils. 

But  thou,  O  man  most  brave,  thou  who  hast 
buttressed  with  thy  patriotic  shoulders  the 
immense  weight  of  the  tottering  state,  gird 
thyself,  and  watch  with  equal  vigilance  against 
such  citizens  as  against  the  most  bitter  enemy. 
O  thou  younger  Brutus,  keep  ever  before  thine 
eyes  the  example  of  the  first  Brutus.  He  was 
Consul;  thou  art  Tribune.     If  we  should  com- 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  31 

pare  the  two  offices,  it  would  be  found  that  the 
Consuls  performed  many  acts  hostile  to  the 
welfare  of  the  Roman  plebs;  indeed  (and  I 
shall  speak  out  bravely),  they  many  times 
treated  it  harshly  and  cruelly.  But  the  Trib- 
unes were  always  and  constantly  the  defend- 
ers of  the  People.  If,  then,  that  Consul  slew 
his  own  sons  because  of  his  love  of  liberty, 
realize  what  is  expected  in  all  circumstances  of 
thee,  a  Tribune.  If  thou  dost  not  spurn  the 
advice  of  a  loyal  friend,  give  no  heed  to  con- 
siderations of  either  birth  or  affection.  Remem- 
ber that  he  whom  thou  hast  felt  to  be  an  enemy 
of  freedom  cannot  possibly  be  a  stancher 
friend  to  thee  than  to  himself.  Such  a  man 
endeavors  to  deprive  both  thee  and  liberty  of 
that  which  is  most  dear. 

It  was  of  the  city  of  Rome  that  Sallust  was 
speaking  when  he  said:  "In  so  large  a  state 
many  and  various  are  the  inclinations  of  men."*^ 
How  numerous,  indeed,  are  those  who  today,  in 
that  same  city,  for  a  small  sum  would  sell 
themselves  and  the  entire  state,  and  would 
prove  traitor  to  all  law,  both  human  and 
divine!  Divine  Providence  has  already  shown 
distinct  marks  of  favor  in  our  behalf,  in  that  the 
greater  portion  of  the  people  is  of  one  mind  and 


32        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

has  shaken  off  the  lethargy  which  was  crushing 
it.  Even  in  its  affliction  the  name  of  the 
Roman  people  inspires  respect  and  awe.  Great 
are  its  resources,  great  its  riches,  if  both  be 
managed  wisely.  The  Roman  people  has 
exceeding  power  of  itself,  provided  only  it  desire 
to  be  united.  A  beginning  has,  indeed,  been 
made;  the  desire  now  exists.  All  who  now 
harbor  contrary  sentiments  are  not  to  be 
reckoned  in  the  number  of  citizens,  but  in  that 
of  enemies.  The  state  must  be  relieved  of  these 
as  a  body  would  be  freed  of  its  poisonous 
secretions.  Thus  the  state,  though  diminished 
in  numbers,  will  be  stronger  and  healthier.  Be 
prudent,  be  brave,  and  strength  will  not  fail 
thee  either  in  protecting  the  liberties  of  the  city 
or  in  re-establishing  its  ancient  sway. 

What  inspiration,  in  truth,  is  not  to  be 
derived  from  the  memory  of  the  past  and  from 
the  grandeur  of  a  name  once  revered  throughout 
the  world  ?  Who  does  not  wish  Rome  the  best 
of  fortune  in  her  endeavors  to  attain  her  right- 
ful empire  ?  Both  God  and  men  champion  so 
just  a  cause.  Italy,  which  but  recently  lay 
listless  and  enfeebled,  with  head  bowed  to 
earth,  has  now  risen  to  her  elbow.  If  you 
Romans  show  perseverance  in  your  undertak- 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  33 

ing,  if  the  glad  reports  of  your  doings  continue 
to  prevail,  shortly  joyful  hopes  will  spring  in  the 
hearts  of  men.  AU  who  can  will  rush  to  your 
assistance;  those  who  are  prevented  by  cir- 
cumstances, will  at  least  second  your  aims  with 
their  vows  and  prayers.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  betrayers  of  their  country  will  be  punished 
by  the  sword  of  the  avenger  in  this  world,  and 
in  the  lower  world  will  they  undergo  the 
tortures  which  they  have  deserved,  tortures 
with  which  they  are  threatened  not  merely  by 
the  learned  men  of  today,  but  also  by  those  of 
antiquity.  These  traitors  are  those  whom 
Maro  has  placed  in  the  circle  of  most  dire 
punishments:^^ 

This  to  a  tyrant  master  sold 
His  native  land  for  cursed  gold, 

Made  laws  for  lucre  and  unmade. 

With  such  men  as  these,  or  rather  (to  speak 
as  I  truly  feel),  with  such  wild  beasts,  all 
sternness  is  benevolence,  all  pity  is  inhuman. 

Thou,  0  extraordinary  man,  hast  opened  for 
thyself  the  path  to  immortahty.  Thou  must 
persevere,  if  thou  desirest  to  reach  the  goal. 
Otherwise,  remember  that  the  more  illustrious 
the  beginning,  the  more  ignoble  the  end.  Many 
dangers  beset  him  who  travels  this  road,  many 


34        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

intricate  and  troublesome  questions  will  present 
themselves.  But  courage  delights  in  obstacles; 
patience,  in  adversity.  We  are  born  for  the 
accomphshment  of  a  glorious  task.  Why 
should  we  sigh,  then,  for  indolent  inactivity? 
Consider,  too,  that  many  tasks  which  seem 
difficult  when  first  essayed  become  most  easy 
after  further  appHcation.  And  yet,  why  should 
I  discourse  on  the  nature  of  things,  when  we  owe 
much  to  our  friends,  still  more  to  our  parents, 
but  everything  to  our  country  ?  Thou  wilt  be 
obliged  to  clash  with  the  hostile  lances  of  civil 
enemies.  Do  thou  rush  fearlessly  to  the 
combat,  inspired  by  the  example  of  Brutus 
himself,  who  met  in  battle  the  son  of  the  Proud 
King  and  slew  him,  though  he  himself  fell 
covered  with  wounds.  He  thus  pursued  even 
into  the  regions  of  Tartarus  him  whom  he  had 
driven  out  from  the  city.^*  Thou,  however, 
wilt  be  victorious  and  wilt  survive  their  death 
uninjured.  But  if  thou  must  fall,  if  thou  must 
sacrifice  thy  life  for  thy  country,  while  the 
shades  of  thine  enemies  hasten  to  the  regions  of 
darkness,  thou  wilt  gain  heaven,  whither  thy 
courage  and  thy  goodness  have  prepared  the 
way  for  thee,  leaving  behind  on  earth  the 
monuments  of  an  enduring  fame.'' 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  35 

What  better  can  we  hope  for?  Romulus 
founded  the  city;  this  Brutus  whom  I  so  fre- 
quently mention  gave  it  Uberty;  Camillus 
restored  both.  What  difference,  then,  0  most 
illustrious  man,  exists  between  these  and  thee  ? 
Romulus  surrounded  a  small  city  with  weak 
ramparts;  art  thou  not  encircling  with  mighty 
walls  the  very  greatest  of  the  cities  which  are  or 
have  been?  Brutus  rescued  Hberty  from  the 
clutches  of  a  single  man;  art  thou  not  reclaim- 
ing a  freedom  usurped  by  many  tyrants? 
Camillus  restored  the  city  from  a  devastation  of 
recent  occurrence,  from  ashes  that  were  still 
smoking;  art  thou  not  restoring  old  ruins  that 
had  long  been  despaired  of  ?^°  Hail,  then,  our 
Camillus,  our  Brutus,  our  Romulus!  Or,  if 
thou  dost  prefer  to  be  addressed  by  some  other 
name,  hail,  thou  author  of  Roman  liberty,  of 
Roman  peace,  of  Roman  tranquiUity.  The 
present  age  owes  it  to  thee  that  it  will  die  in 
liberty;  to  thee  posterity  will  owe  that  it  is 
conceived  in  liberty. 

I  had  resolved,  illustrious  man,  to  beg  of  thee 
two  favors,  briefly  and  easily  asked,  but  far- 
reaching  and  most  beneficial  in  their  effect. 
Thou  hast,  of  thine  own  accord,  anticipated  me 
in  one  of  these;   it  will  suffice,  then,  to  have 


36        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

asked  thee  for  the  other.  I  hear  the  following 
reports  of  thee:  that,  every  day  since  thy 
accession  to  the  rule  of  the  Republic,  at  dawn 
and  before  attending  to  any  transactions  of 
either  pubHc  or  private  nature,  it  is  customary 
for  thee  to  receive  the  Sacrament  of  our  Lord's 
Body,  with  sincerest  devotion  and  after  a  most 
searching  examination  of  conscience.  This  is 
doubtless  as  it  should  be  for  the  wise  man  who 
regards  the  frailty  of  the  flesh  and  the  brevity  of 
life,  and  who  beholds  the  manifold  dangers  that 
threaten  on  aU  sides.  That  most  illustrious  of 
Rome's  generals  would  have  followed  the  same 
course,  I  believe,  had  he  lived  in  these  days. 
For  he  was  as  duly  observant  of  his  sacred 
duties  as  his  age  permitted,  an  age  shrouded 
in  darkness  and  deprived  of  the  knowledge  of 
heaven.^''' 

It  remains  for  me  to  ask,  therefore,  that  thou 
shouldst  not  deprive  thy  mind  of  its  nourish- 
ment, neither  when  reclining,  nor  lying  sleepless 
upon  thy  couch,  nor  when  administering  to  the 
needs  of  the  flesh,  nor  when  enjoying  a  moment 
of  relaxation  from  thy  labors.  Read  whenever 
thou  hast  any  spare  moments;  if  thou  canst  not 
do  so  with  convenience,  have  others  read  to 
thee.    In  so  doing  thou  wilt  be  imitating  that 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  37 

most  worthy  Augustus,  of  whom  it  is  written 
that  "  after  retiring  to  bed,  he  never  slept  more 
than  seven  hours,  nor  were  they  seven  hours  of 
unbroken  sleep;  for,  within  that  period,  he 
would  awaken  three  or  four  times,  and  if 
unable  to  regain  his  interrupted  slumbers, 
would  summon  to  his  assistance  his  readers  or 
story-tellers."  Of  the  same  Augustus  is  it  said 
that  he  was  so  economical  a  steward  of  his  time 
that  he  either  read  or  wrote  even  while  eating 
and  drinking.^*  For  one  in  thy  present  circum- 
stances, what  could  be  read  or  heard  to  greater 
advantage  than  the  deeds  of  thy  ancestors,  of 
whom  no  city  has  had  a  greater  number? 
Thou  hast  native  instances  of  all  the  virtues. 
And,  surely,  in  the  work  of  that  famous  and 
venerable  Cato  the  Censor,  we  read  that  the 
Romans  were  wont  to  sing  the  praises  of  their 
heroes  to  the  sound  of  the  trumpet.^^  On  this  I 
do  not  insist;  and  yet  even  this,  as  occasion 
warrants,  will  cause  the  eye  to  flash  and  stir  the 
heart  to  emulation.  I  shall  be  content  if  the 
annals  and  the  history  of  Rome  are  frequently 
read  in  thy  presence.  And  with  this  I  have 
said  enough  in  thy  regard. 

But  you,  O  citizens,  now  for  the  first  time 
truly  deserving  the  name  of  citizens,  be  fully 


38        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

convinced  that  this  man  has  been  sent  to  you 
from  heaven.*''  Cherish  him  as  one  of  the  rare 
gifts  of  God.  In  his  defense  hazard  ye  your  Hves. 
For  he  too  could  have  Hved  his  Hfe  in  slavery 
together  with  the  rest.*^  He  too  could  have  sub- 
mitted to  the  yoke  which  so  great  a  people  was 
enduring  without  a  murmur.  If  such  an  exist- 
ence had  seemed  too  burdensome  to  him,  he 
could  have  fled  far  from  the  sight  of  the  unhappy 
city  and  could  have  escaped  the  shower  of  abuse 
and  insults  by  voluntary  exile,  as  we  know  to  have 
been  the  case  with  certain  prominent  citizens. 
It  was  only  love  of  country  that  kept  him  back. 
He  deemed  it  sacrilege  to  abandon  it  in  such 
condition.  In  this  city  he  resolved  to  Uve; 
for  this  city  to  die.  He  took  pity  on  your 
misfortunes.*'^  You  see  to  what  dangerous 
heights  he  has  risen.  Give  him  now  your  sup- 
port, lest  he  fall.  Recollect,  I  pray  ye,  how 
frequently  you  have  exposed  yourselves  to  the 
perils  of  death  in  behalf  of  most  haughty  and 
imgrateful  tyrants.  RecoUect  how  often  you 
drew  the  sword  in  defense,  not  of  your  property, 
but  of  theirs.  In  fine,  recoUect  how  often  you 
fought  to  decide  who  of  them  should  be  the 
most  powerful,  and  who  should  display  the 
greater  licentiousness  in  plundering,  pillaging, 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  39 

butchering,  killing,  and  slaying.  Ye  who  have 
dared  so  much  for  unworthy  lords  and  in  the 
pursuit  of  shameful  servitude,  it  is  but  fitting 
that  ye  should  now  nobly  dare  in  your  own 
behalf  and  in  the  defense  of  liberty,  liberty  for 
which  men  have  rid  Rome  of  its  kings  and  have 
deprived  the  Caesars  of  their  Hves.  Tell  me, 
Romans:  if  you  did  not  endure  the  unbounded 
license  of  the  Roman  kings  and  emperors,  will 
you  so  patiently  tolerate  the  sanguinary  rage 
and  the  insatiable  greed  of  foreign-born  rob- 
bers ?  I  do  not  think  that  God  is  so  deaf  to 
the  prayers  of  the  devout.  To  live  with  these 
tyrants  is  sadder  far  than  to  die  without  them. 
Dare  do  something  for  your  children,  for  your 
wives,  for  the  hoary  heads  of  your  fathers  and 
mothers,  for  the  graves  of  your  ancestors. 

There  is  nothing  which  should  not  be 
hazarded  in  behalf  of  the  RepubUc.  It  was 
patriotism  that  compelled  the  Decii  to  offer 
their  devoted  lives  to  their  country;  that  urged 
Marcus  Curtius  to  leap,  full-armed  and 
mounted,  into  that  yawning  chasm  in  the 
earth;  that  urged  Horatius  Codes  to  oppose 
his  own  body,  firm  as  a  wall,  to  the  Etruscan 
legions,  to  await  until  the  bridge  had  been 
destroyed,  and  then,  though  heavily  laden  with 


40       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

arms,  to  plunge  headlong  into  the  Tiber's  tide. 
It  was  love  of  country  that  made  Gains  Mutius 
Scaevola  inflict  upon  his  erring  right  hand  a 
penalty  which  struck  admiration  and  fear  in  his 
very  enemies.  Love  of  country  drove  Attilius 
Regulus  back  to  the  tortures  of  his  angered 
executioners,  though  he  could  have  remained 
safe  at  home.  The  same  noble  cause  made  the 
two  Scipios  die  in  Spain,  and  block  with  their 
dead  bodies  (when  no  other  means  remained) 
the  path  of  the  Carthaginians.  The  son  of  one 
of  these  Scipios  preferred  to  die  in  poverty  and 
obscurity  rather  than  to  impair  in  the  slightest 
degree  the  liberty  of  the  people.  The  son  of 
the  other,  though  a  private  citizen,  crushed  the 
turbulent  measures  of  Tiberius  Gracchus  with 
death.  Patriotism  induced  many  other  Romans 
to  employ  the  same  redress  against  disturbing 
citizens.  And  as  a  last  instance,  I  shall  recall 
Marcus  Cato  the  Younger,  who  received  a 
surname  from  the  city  of  his  death,  and  who 
laid  violent  hands  upon  himself  rather  than 
behold  the  face  of  his  tyrant  (remarkable  and 
unique  man  though  he  was),  or  witness  the 
enslaving  of  his  coimtry.^^ 

It  is  interesting  to  rehearse  the  names  of  these 
men,  and  particularly  so  in  the  presence  of 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  41 

those  citizens  from  whose  blood  have  sprung 
not  merely  individuals,  but  entire  families  of 
the  same  firm  and  united  resolve.  Of  this  let 
the  Cremera  bear  witness,  the  scene  of  the 
memorable  and  at  the  same  time  pitiful  end  of 
three  hundred  and  six  Fabii.^^  And  not  only 
families,  but  legions  and  entire  armies  have 
deemed  it  dear  to  rush  upon  death  in  defense  of 
coimtry.  I  desire,  moreover,  that  these  deeds 
be  read  on  that  very  Capitol  (as  I  conjecture) 
from  whose  summit  that  bold  Manlius  was 
hurled  headlong,  Manlius  who  but  recently  had 
been  guardian  of  that  hill  and  who  suffered 
death  for  this  one  reason :  that  he  was  suspected 
of  plotting  against  that  liberty  which  he  had 
previously  defended,  and  of  desiring  an  issue 
not  in  accord  with  his  excellent  beginning.  One 
and  the  same  Rock  bore  witness  both  to  his  great 
glory  and  to  his  death,  and  served  as  an  ever- 
lasting warning  to  all  who  should  attempt 
similar  treason.^^ 

Let  no  one  falsely  suppose  that  those  who 
keep  vigilant  watch  over  their  liberties,  and 
who  have  hitherto  championed  the  cause  of 
the  abandoned  Republic,  are  performing  a  duty 
rightfully  belonging  to  others.  It  is  their  own 
cause  they  are  defending.    Let  each  man  be 


42        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

convinced  that  only  in  this  way  will  his  inter- 
ests be  safe.  It  is  only  thus  that  the  merchant 
gains  peace,  the  soldier  glory,  the  husbandman 
plenty,  the  devout  their  rehgious  services,  the 
scholar  leisure,  the  old  rest,  the  boys  rudiments 
of  learning,  the  maidens  nuptials,  and  the 
matrons  honor.  Only  in  this  way,  finally,  will 
all  find  happiness. 

O  citizens  of  Rome,  strain  every  nerve,  bring 
to  bear  every  pubHc  and  private  resource  to  the 
advancement  of  the  public  and  the  private 
welfare.  Let  all  other  cares  give  way  to  this. 
If  you  neglect  this  care,  all  your  other  deeds 
will  be  of  no  avail.  If,  on  the  contrary,  you 
devote  all  your  energies  to  it,  even  though  you 
may  seem  to  accomplish  nothing,  nevertheless 
wiU  you  perform  to  the  full  your  duties  as 
citizens  and  as  men.  Let  every  vestige  of 
civil  fury  be  effaced  from  your  midst,  I  beseech 
you.  Let  the  flames  which  had  been  fanned 
among  us  by  the  breath  of  tyrants  be  extin- 
guished by  the  warnings  and  the  guarded 
kindness  of  your  deliverer.^"  Take  upon  your- 
selves this  friendly  rivalry:  not  who  is  to  be 
the  more  powerful,  but  who  is  to  be  the  better 
citizen,  and  the  more  patient;  who  is  to  evince 
the  deeper  love  of  country,  the  greater  humiHty 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  43 

toward  his  neighbors  and  the  more  implacable 
hatred  for  the  tyrants.  Enter  upon  this  contest 
with  your  Tribune:  as  to  whether  he  will  show 
greater  foresight  in  the  honest  administration  of 
government  than  you  readiness  in  obeying. 
And  if,  perchance,  love  (than  which  there  is 
nothing  stronger)  prove  insufficient  to  bring 
your  hearts  into  harmonious  accord,  then  may 
considerations  of  common  interest  avail  you. 
Be  united  by  this  bond  at  least.  Cling  to  each 
other  tenaciously,  peaceably.  Wield  not  the 
arms  handed  down  to  you  by  your  fathers 
except  against  the  enemies  of  the  common- 
wealth. Offer  as  most  pleasing  sacrifice  to  the 
ashes  of  your  dead  the  exile,  the  destitution, 
and  the  punishment  of  the  barons.  The  dead 
will  rejoice  in  such  deeds;  and  had  they  fore- 
seen the  future,  they  would  surely  have  breathed 
their  last  with  greater  resignation  and  peace 
of  mind. 

But  I  fear  that  I  have  detained  you  by  my 
words  longer  than  is  fitting,  especially  at  a  time 
when  there  is  far  greater  need  of  action. 
Neither  my  calling,  alas,  nor  my  lot  permit  me 
to  assist  you  in  deed.  Hence  I  send  you  words, 
the  one  means  of  assistance  at  my  disposal.  I 
confess  that  at  first  I  was  roused  by  the  glorious 


44       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

reports  to  envy  you  your  great  honor.  I 
heaped  countless  reproaches  upon  my  lot 
which  had  deprived  me  of  taking  active  part  in 
so  joyous  a  consummation.  But  I  was  not 
entirely  excluded.  Over  lands  and  seas  there 
came  to  me  my  due  share  of  happiness.  Hastily 
I  seized  my  pen,  that,  in  the  midst  of  such  great 
and  such  remarkable  harmony  of  a  dehvered 
people,  my  voice  too  might  be  heard  though 
from  a  distance — that  I  too  might  perform  my 
duty  as  a  Roman  citizen.^^  Moreover,  this 
subject  which  I  have  now  treated  in  loose  prose, 
I  shall,  perhaps,  attempt  in  the  near  future,  but 
in  different  measures,  provided  you  will  not 
deceive  my  hopes  and  wishes,  and  will  not  deny 
me  perseverance  in  your  glorious  undertaking. 
Crowned  with  the  chaplet  of  ApoUo,  I  shall 
ascend  the  lofty  and  inspiring  HeHcon.  There, 
at  the  brim  of  the  Castalian  font,  I  shall  recall 
the  Muses  from  their  exile,  and  shall  sing 
resounding  words  in  abiding  memory  of  your 
glory,  words  that  will  ring  throughout  the 
ages.^^  Farewell,  thou  bravest  of  men!  Fare- 
well, ye  best  of  citizens!  Farewell,  thou  most 
glorious  City  of  the  Seven  Hills. 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  45 

NOTES 

1.  Compare  the  similar  sentiment  of  the  following 
lines: 

"Liberta,  dolce  e  desiato  bene, 
Mai  conosciuto  a  chi  talor  no'l  perde." 

These  lines  are  from  the  Canzone  Quel  c'ha  nostra 
natura  in  sh  piu  degno,  celebrating  the  capture  of 
Parma  by  Azzo  da  Correggio.  For  a  detailed  study  of 
this  poem  and  of  its  authenticity,  see  Parma  liberata 
dal  giogo  di  Mastino  della  Scala,  addl  21  Maggio  1341, 
by  Francesco  Berlan,  in  Scelta  di  curiositd  letterarie, 
CIX;  and  also  Carducci,  Rime  di  F.  P.  sopra  argomenti 
storici,  etc.,  pp.  79-96. 

2.  Cf.  Eccl.  9:12. 

3.  These  are  references  to  the  two  pre-eminent 
families  of  the  Roman  nobility,  the  Orsini  and  the 
Colonna.  In  mediaeval  fables  which  were  widely 
credited,  the  Colonna  were  represented  as  coming  to 
Rome  from  the  banks  of  the  Rhine  (Gregorovius,  IV, 
320,  n.  2);  but  their  ancestry  has  been  traced,  with 
greater  probability,  back  to  the  loth  century,  to 
Alberic,  Count  of  Tusculum  (Papencordt,  p.  15). 
According  to  Gregorovius,  indeed,  even  this  w^ould 
stamp  the  Colonna,  by  far  the  most  renowned  nobles 
of  mediaeval  Rome,  as  being  of  German  descent  (see 
op.  cit.,  VI,  263,  n.  I,  which  gives  a  list  of  the  names  of 
33  families  of  the  Roman  nobility,  who  are  stated  as 
being  of  undoubted  German  origin). 

At  any  rate,  the  first  member  of  this  family  to  make 
his  appearance  in  history  is  a  certain  Petrus  de  Co- 
lumpna,  a  relation  of  the  Count  of  Tusculum,  who  in 


46       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

iioi  A.D.  appears  as  the  strenuous  opponent  of  Pope 
Paschalis  II.  The  Colonna  soon  made  themselves 
lords  of  Palestrina,  which  became  and  remained  (with 
short  interruptions)  the  stronghold  round  which  the 
power  of  the  Colonna  always  rallied.  From  the  very 
beginning  this  family  was  the  main  support  of  the 
Roman  emperors,  and  was,  consequently,  of  strongly 
emphasized  Ghibelline  tendencies  (Papencordt,  pp. 
15-16;   Greg.,  IV,  319-20,  and  loc.  cit.). 

The  origin  of  the  Orsini  is  even  more  obscure.  The 
family  records  (which  are  said  to  be  devoid  of  critical 
value)  trace  their  origin  to  the  valley  of  the  Tiber 
near  Spoleto;  but  these  statements  are  not  reliable. 
Some  authorities  (though  evidently  in  the  minority) 
would  trace  also  the  Orsini  ancestry  back  to  the  Rhine 
(cf.  Greg.,  V,  39,  and  VI,  263,  n.  i ;  the  Commentary  to 
Eclogue  5  of  Petrarca  in  Cod.  33,  Plut.  52  Laur.,  and  that 
by  Francesco  Piendibeni  da  Montepulciano  in  Avena, 
II  BucoUcum  Carmen,  pp.  215  and  271,  respectively). 

As  distinguished  from  the  Colonna,  the  Orsini  were, 
as  a  rule,  partisans  of  the  Guelph  cause;  and  this  may 
account  in  great  part  for  their  hereditary  and  unceasing 
warfare  with  the  Colonna. 

4.  Suet.,  Aug.,  53:  Domini  appellationem  ut  male- 
dictum  et  obprobrium  semper  exhorruit. 

5.  Juvenal,  i.  in  (trans,  by  Gifford,  I,  25). 

6.  Lucan,  viii.  354-56  (trans,  by  Rowe). 

7.  Livy,  XXX.  30,  7.  Petrarca  had  had  this  same 
passage  in  mind  when  he  wrote  the  Africa,  in  which 
Hannibal  says  to  Scipio,  Africa,  VII,  245-46:  Culpari 
transacta  tamen  licet  usqu^  loquendo;  Mutari  vetitum  est. 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  47 

8.  The  three  kings  meant  are,  respectively,  Ancus 
Martins,  Tarquinius  Priscus,  and  Servdus  Tullius. 

The  Sabine  origin  of  Ancus  Martins  is  not  actually 
mentioned,  but  is  clearly  implied  in  two  other  passages. 
The  first  of  these  is  De  remediis,  I,  Dial.  LXXVIII, 
De  nepotibus,  in  which  Petrarca  says  (p.  225):  "Ancus 
Martins,  the  grandson  of  Numa  on  his  mother's  side, 
with  great  glory  held  the  royal  power  at  Rome  which 
his  grandfather  had  held  before  him."  The  second 
passage  is  a  precisely  similar  one  from  the  short  life  of 
Ancus  Martins  in  Petrarca's  De  viris  illustribus,  I,  p. 
48:  Numae  nepos  exfilia. 

Tarquinius  Priscus  was  the  son  of  Demaratus  of 
Corinth,  who  belonged  to  the  family  of  the  Bacchiadae. 
The  story  as  told  by  Cicero,  in  the  De  republica,  ii.  34 
(a  work  not  known  to  Petrarca)  is  as  follows:  "They 
say  that  there  was  a  certain  Demaratus  of  Corinth, 
who,  because  of  his  integrity,  influence,  and  wealth, 
was  easily  the  foremost  citizen  of  his  state.  When 
Demaratus  could  no  longer  endure  the  rule  of  Cypselus, 
tyrant  of  the  Corinthians,  he  is  said  to  have  fled  with 
vast  sums  of  money,  and  to  have  betaken  himself  to 
Tarquinii,  the  most  flourishing  city  of  Etruria." 
Fracassetti  does  not  seem  to  have  understood  the  ex- 
pression "  Corithian  origin,"  for  he  erroneously  prints 
a  sic  after  the  word  Corinthiae  {op.  cit.,  Ill,  p.  426). 

The  obscure  origin  of  Servius  Tullius  is  mentioned 
(together  with  that  of  Tarquinius  Priscus)  in  another 
dialogue  of  the  De  remediis  (II,  Dial.  V,  De  originis 
ohscuritate,  p.  364):  "Tarquinius  Priscus  was  the  son 
of  a  trader  and  a  foreigner;  indeed,  he  was  not  even  of 


48        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Italian  stock.  Servius  Tullius,  who  was  born  of  a 
slave,  or,  as  some  would  have  it,  of  a  woman  of  noble 
birth  held  in  captivity,  gained  the  throne  of  Rome  by 
his  merits."  The  example  of  the  latter  king  is  again 
cited  in  De  rem.,  II,  Dial.  IX,  De  damno  passo,  p.  384: 
"And  the  sixth  king,  though  of  lowly  origin,  or,  as 
others  have  thought,  of  servile  origin,  rose  to  the  very 
heights  of  power."  The  classical  sources  for  all  the 
statements  here  made  by  Petrarca  are  Livy  i.  32,  34, 
39,  40,  47;  Eutropius,  i.  5-7;  Florus,  i.  4,  5,  6;  and 
Seneca,  Ep.,  108,  30. 

9.  Cola  was  born  toward  the  middle  of  the  year  13 13, 
which  would  make  him  thirty-three  years  of  age  at  the 
time  of  his  rise  to  power  on  May  20,  1347. 

10.  Petrarca  expresses  the  same  ideas  with  reference 
to  L.  Jimius  Brutus,  in  De  viris  ill.,  I,  52.  After  telling 
of  Lucretia's  suicide,  Petrarca  continues  that,  while 
all  the  rest  of  Rome  was  undecided,  Brutus  revealed 
his  true  character  and  spirit  (long  concealed  through 
fear  of  the  tyrant  who  had  slain  his  brother),  and  stood 
forth  as  the  leader  in  the  vengeance  demanded  by 
the  state.     Cf.  Petrarca's  Africa,  III,  684-772. 

The  indirect  sources  are  Val.  Max.,  vii.  3,  2:  obtunsi 
se  cordis  esse  simulavit  eaque  fallacia  maximas  virtutes 
Sims  texit;  and  Atictor  de  viris  ill.,  x:  sttUtitiam  finxit; 
unde  Brutus  dictus.  The  primary  source  is,  of  course, 
Livy  i.  56,  7-8,  of  which  this  passage  of  Petrarca  is 
a  paraphrase. 

The  words  of  a  contemporary  biographer  quaintly 
describe  how  Cola  was  made  the  butt  of  the  barons' 
mirth  during  this  period  of  his  career.    The  anonymous 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  49 

Vita  di  Cola  di  Rienzo  says  (I,  4,  column  735):  "In 
these  days  he  (Cola)  used  to  dine  with  the  nobles  of 
Rome  at  the  house  of  Giovanni  Colonna,  and  the 
Roman  barons  would  derive  great  amusement  from 
his  speech.  They  were  wont  to  make  him  rise  to  his 
feet,  and  to  urge  him  to  speak  thus  standing.  And  he, 
in  the  course  of  his  address,  would  say:  'I  shall  prose- 
cute all  the  barons  here  present:  this  one  shall  I  hang, 
that  one  decapitate.'  On  all  of  them  would  he  pass 
judgment.    Whereat  the  barons  would  die  of  laughter." 

11.  Petrarca  here  refers  to  the  beginning  of  his 
acquaintance  with  Rienzo  in  1343.  See  the  first 
letter  of  this  volume. 

12.  The  Colonna  and  the  Orsini  had,  in  the  very 
nature  of  things,  come  to  divide  the  city  into  sections 
within  which  they  were,  respectively,  the  absolute 
masters.  Whenever  war  broke  out  between  them,  it 
became  all-important  to  have  control  of  the  bridges 
which  spanned  the  Tiber;  and  it  is  for  this  reason  that 
in  the  treaties  and  the  papal  briefs  referring  to  these 
wars  a  place  of  importance  is  assigned  to  the  articles 
dealing  with  the  bridges  of  Rome. 

The  said  princely  houses  had  once  again  begun  open 
warfare  on  May  6,  1333.  After  this  struggle  had 
continued  for  two  years.  Pope  Benedict  XII  exhorted 
the  Romans,  by  brief  of  July  21,  1335  (Theiner,  II,  No. 
11),  to  lay  down  their  arms  and  to  cease  their  fratricidal 
strife.  The  barons  heeded  not,  and  on  September  3, 
1335)  the  Orsini  destroyed  Ponte  Molle.  On  January 
i3>  1336,  the  nobles  agreed  upon  a  truce,  which  was 
confirmed  by  Benedict  XII  two  months  later,  by  brief 


50       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

issued  March  i8,  1336  (Theiner,  II,  No.  20;  cf. 
Gregorovius,  VI,  187-95).  After  a  lengthy  preamble 
common  in  such  documents,  this  brief  settles  first  of  all 
the  question  of  the  bridges.  The  paragraph  runs  as 
follows  (Theiner,  op.  cit.,  p.  10,  col.  i): 

"And  in  the  first  place,  indeed,  concerning  the 
tutelage  and  repair  of  certain  bridges  of  said  City  and 
of  its  surrounding  district,  of  which  bridges  four  are 
held  by  said  Stefano  Colonna,  a  fifth  by  said  Jacopo 
Savelli,  and  several  others  by  the  said  Orsini: 

"After  having  taken  due  cognizance  of  the  argu- 
ments submitted  by  both  parties,  and  believing  that 
said  bridges  are  known  to  belong,  not  to  the  holders  of 
the  same,  but  to  the  above-mentioned  Roman  people, 
we  hereby  wish,  order,  and  decree  that  the  said  four 
bridges  held  by  Stefano,  and  the  fifth  held  by  Jacopo, 
and  the  other  bridges  held  by  the  said  Orsini,  be  freely 
surrendered  and  placed  in  the  power  of  said  Archbishop 
and  Syndic,  who  shall  see  to  it  that,  throughout  the 
continuation  of  this  truce,  the  said  bridges,  and 
especially  the  Ponte  MoUe,  be  diligently  and  faithfully 
guarded,  in  such  wise  that  they  cannot  fall  into  the 
hands  of  either  party;  (said  Archbishop,  moreover, 
shall  see  to  it  that)  said  Ponte  Molle,  and  the  other 
bridges  which  have  been  destroyed,  be  repaired  for 
the  public  welfare  and  at  the  expense  of  those  who  have 
destroyed  the  same,  not  that  any  fortresses  may  be 
erected  thereon — the  construction  of  which  we  strongly 
forbid — ^but  that  provision  may  be  made  for  the  neces- 
sary and  convenient  passage,  over  said  bridges,  of 
citizens,  pilgrims,  and  other  travelers." 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  add  that,  with  the  French 
Popes  residing  in  the  Babylon  of  the  West,  the  above 
injunctions  were  not  obeyed  (cf.  the  brief  of  April  13, 
1338,  in  Theiner,  II,  No.  56). 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  51 

It  was  just  one  year  after  the  above-mentioned  truce 
had  been  agreed  upon  that  Petrarca  visited  Rome  for 
the  first  time.  The  countryside  had  not  had  time  to 
recover  from  the  dread  and  the  anxiety  caused  by  the 
reprisals  of  the  barons;  and  Petrarca,  who  had  reached 
the  Colonna  stronghold  of  Capranica  toward  the 
beginning  of  January,  1337,  was  astonished  first  at  the 
beauty  of  the  country,  and  then  at  the  unsettled  and 
distressed  condition  of  the  wretched  inhabitants.  For 
a  description  of  conditions  in  the  Roman  Campagna 
at  this  time,  read  Petrarca's  letter  to  Cardinal  Giovanni 
Colonna,  Fam.,  II,  12. 

13.  Laments  on  the  squalid  aspect  of  widowed  Rome 
(as  Petrarca  ever  thought  of  the  city)  are  to  be  found 
scattered  everywhere  in  his  works,  and  chiefly  in  those 
letters  which  he  addressed  to  the  Popes  and  the 
Emperors  in  defense  of  the  cause  of  Rome  and  of  the 
majesty  of  the  Roman  people.  In  an  epistle  to 
Clement  VI  {Ep.  poet.,  II,  5,  written  in  1342),  Petrarca 
represents  Rome  as  saying  {Opera  Omnia,  ed.  1581,  III, 
92,  col.  2) :  "  My  woimds  are  as  numerous  as  my  churches 
and  fortified  places;  the  walls  of  the  city,  thickly  strewn 
with  ruins,  reveal  but  the  remnants  of  a  stately  and 
lamentable  dty,  and  move  all  spectators  to  tears." 

The  most  specific  lines,  perhaps,  on  the  disappear- 
ance of  the  monuments  of  ancient  Rome,  due  to  the 
intramural  strife  of  ages,  are  those  which  Petrarca 
penned  in  that  Dialogue  of  the  De  Remediis  which 
discusses  the  futility  of  hoping  for  glory  from  the 
erection  of  monumental  buildings  {Dial.  CXVIII). 
With  this  Dialogue  compare  Fam.,  II,  14. 


52        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

14.  Alas!  poor  Naples!  The  corrupt  government  of 
Parthenope  had  driven  from  Petrarca's  mind  the  fond 
memories  of  six  years  before.  In  1341  he  had  visited 
Naples  on  his  way  to  Rome  to  receive  the  laurel  crown, 
had  been  enthusiastically  welcomed  by  that  King 
Robert  whom  alone  Petrarca  considered  a  worthy 
judge  of  his  fitness  for  the  laurel,  and  had  been  dis- 
missed on  April  4  with  gifts  of  regal  robes  and  with  a 
noble  escort.  Petrarca's  cup  of  gratitude  was  full  to 
overflowing.  He  never,  thereafter,  omitted  the 
slightest  opportunity  for  lauding  King  Robert  to  the 
skies,  the  prince  whom  he  always  proclaimed  as  the 
wisest,  kindest,  and  most  scholarly  of  monarchs. 

The  death  of  King  Robert,  on  January  19,  1343,  was 
a  blow  from  which  Petrarca  never  recovered,  and  from 
which  the  Neapolitan  kingdom  recovered  only  after 
many  decades.  Robert's  son  Charles,  Duke  of 
Calabria,  was  already  dead  (died  1328),  so  that  the 
throne  fell  to  Robert's  granddaughters,  Giovanna  and 
her  young  sister  Maria.  Both  Giovanna  and  her 
consort,  Prince  Andrew,  were  minors,  and  a  regency 
was  established  according  to  plans  which  had  been 
perfected  by  King  Robert  himself.  This  arrangement 
thoroughly  displeased  the  Pope,  who,  in  virtue  of  the 
high  authority  wielded  by  the  church  in  those  states, 
and  because  of  the  terms  of  the  investiture,  claimed 
that  the  rule  of  Naples  had  reverted  to  him.  Before 
pressing  his  claim,  however,  he  resolved  to  send  an 
envoy  to  gather  more  accurate  information  concerning 
the  state  of  the  kingdom. 

Clement  VI  consequently  looked  about  for  one  who 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  53 

should  worthily  represent  his  cause  at  the  court  of 
Naples.  Whom  was  he  to  select?  The  choice 
inevitably  fell  upon  Petrarca,  who  on  his  former  visit 
had  made  the  acquaintance  of  prominent  Neapolitans, 
such  as  Giovanni  Barili,  Paolo  di  Perugia,  and  Barbato 
di  Solmona.  The  torch-bearer  of  the  humanists,  the 
poet  laureate  and  the  Roman  citizen  who  but  recently 
had  received  the  priorate  of  San  Nicola  di  Migliarino 
(near  Pisa)  at  the  hands  of  Clement  VT,  accepted  the 
trust,  and  undertook  to  represent  the  head  of  the 
Christian  world  at  the  Guelph  coiu-t  of  Naples,  which 
was  the  most  powerful  state  of  Italy  at  that  time.  He 
reached  Naples  on  October  12,  1343. 

Petrarca's  dear  and  intimate  friend,  Philippe  de 
Cabassole,  Bishop  of  Cavaillon,  occupied  the  chief  posi- 
tion on  the  Board  of  Regency,  and  hence  the  poet  enter- 
tained bright  hopes  of  executing  successfidly  both  the 
charge  of  Clement  VI  and  the  one  intrusted  to  him  by 
Cardinal  Giovanni  Colonna.  Unfortunately,  Philippe's 
control  was  only  a  nominal  one,  while  the  real  power 
had  been  usurped  by  one  of  Queen  Giovanna's  female 
dependents  (who  was  called  the  Catanese),  by  the 
queen-mother  Sancia  (King  Robert's  second  wife),  and 
by  a  certain  Robert,  a  Hungarian  monk  of  the  Fran- 
ciscan order.  It  is  needless  to  add  that  Petrarca's 
mission  was  unsuccessful;  and  the  disappointment  at 
his  failure,  together  with  his  horror  at  the  degraded 
condition  of  the  court,  which  so  strongly  contrasted 
with  that  of  his  earlier  visit,  inspired  not  only  the 
present  discourteous  reference  to  Naples,  but  also  the 
acrid  description  which  is  to  be  found  in  a  letter 


54        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

written  on  November  29,  1343,  and  addressed  to 
Cardinal  Giovanni  Colonna  (Fam.,  V,  3;  see  also 
Fam.,  XXIV,  11,  in  Cosenza,  Petrarch's  Letters  to 
Classical  Authors,  p.  138). 

15.  The  same  story  is  told  by  our  author  in  De  viris 
ill.,  I,  52,  and  is  borrowed  from  Livy  ii.  5,  5-8;  Auctor 
de  viris  ill.,  x.  The  closing  sentence  of  Petrarca  (Frac, 
III,  p.  430),  sanclius  aestimans  sibi  filios  eripi  quam 
patriae  libertatem,  seems,  however,  to  have  been  more 
directly  inspired  by  Val.  Max.,  v.  8,  i :  Exuit  patrem,  ut 
consulem  ageret,  orhusque  vivere  quam  publicae  vindictae 
deesse  maluit. 

16.  Sallust,  Catilina,  li.  35. 

17.  Vergil,  Aen.,  vi.  621-22  (Conington). 

18.  Petrarca  was  very  fond  of  this  story.  He  tells  it 
briefly  in  De  rem.,  I,  Dial.  CII,  De  spe  vincendi,  p.  283. 
One  of  the  interlocutors  is  so  hopeful  of  victory  that  he 
is  admonished  that  both  the  leaders  of  the  hostile 
forces  may  perish  in  the  strife,  as  often  happened 
abroad  and  also  at  Rome,  "in  the  first  battle  which  was 
fought  after  the  expulsion  of  the  kings,  when  the  consul 
Brutus  pursued  the  son  of  the  Proud  King  even  into 
the  regions  of  the  dead." 

But  Petrarca  naturally  enlarges  upon  these  brief 
statements  in  his  life  of  Brutus,  De  viris  ill.,  I,  p.  54: 

"When  the  exiled  king  realized  by  this  action 
[Brutus'  killing  of  his  own  children;  see  above  n.  15] 
that  a  return  to  Rome  by  fraudulent  means  was 
impossible,  he  had  recourse  to  open  violence,  and  sought 
the  aid  of  the  Etruscans.  Relying  upon  these,  he 
entered  the  Roman  territory  at  the  head  of  a  large 
army.    When  Aruns,  the  king's  son,  beheld  Brutus 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  55 

adorned  with  the  consular  ornaments  and  advancing 
against  him,  maddened  with  poignant  grief  and 
goaded  by  the  thought  of  his  lost  kingdom,  he  spurred 
on  his  steed  and  rushed  upon  the  consul.  Seeing  this, 
Brutus  hurled  himself  against  the  enemy  with  equal 
fury.  They  clashed  together  with  such  violence, 
with  such  utter  neglect  of  self,  urged  on  by  the  single 
thought  of  wounding  the  opponent,  that  both  were 
laid  low  at  the  same  time,  each  pierced  by  the  other's 
spear.  Brutus,  himself  mortally  wounded,  breathed 
his  last  (to  quote  the  word  used  by  Florus)  over  the 
body  of  Aruns,  whom  he  had  killed  with  his  own  hand, 
as  if  to  drive  the  adulterer  (as  Florus  calls  him),  or,  to 
speak  more  exactly,  as  if  to  drive  the  brother  of  the 
adulterer  from  this  world,  even  as  he  had  already 
driven  him  from  the  city,  and  thus  pursue  him  even 
into  the  regions  of  Tartarus." 

The  reference  is  to  Florus,  I,  10,  8.  The  whole  is 
based  upon  Livy,  ii.  6,  7-9;  Val.  Max.,  v.  6,  i;  Atictor 
de  viris  ill.,  x. 

Both  the  passages  from  Petrarca  cited  above  are 
later  than  1347,  the  date  of  this  letter;  for,  the  De  viris 
ill.  was  begun  in  1350,  and  the  De  remediis  in  1358. 
An  earlier  instance  of  the  use  of  this  story  by  our 
author  is  Fam.,  VI,  2,  written  in  1343,  where  Petrarca 
says  (Frac,  I,  p.  312):  ad  inferos  sequens  consul, 
which  differs  but  slightly  from  this  passage  in  Var.  48 
(Frac,  III,  p.  432):  in  tartarum  usque  persecutus  est. 
Even  earlier  than  this  date  is  the  passage  in  the  Africa, 
written  between  1339  and  1341-2  (Book  III,  786-802, 
especially  lines  795-96):  Ferus  ultor  ad  umbras, 
Perfide,  Tartareas  ferro  sequar,  inquit,  acuto. 

19.  For  this  entire  paragraph,  compare  Stanza  7  of 
the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil,  given  in  full  below,  in  n.  32. 


56       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

20.  See  preceding  note,  and  compare  especially 
vss.  12-14. 

21.  Vita,  I,  20,  col,  795:  "And  then  he  built  upon 
the  Capitol  a  very  beautiful  chapel,  inclosing  it  within 
a  railing  of  iron  overlaid  with  silver.  There  he  had 
high  mass  sung  by  many  priests  and  with  great 
illumination." 

To  Petrarca's  mind  the  most  illustrious  of  Rome's 
generals  was,  of  course,  Scipio  Africanus,  the  hero  of 
his  epic,  the  Africa.  A  few  references  to  Scipio  taken 
at  random  from  our  author's  works  are:  Roma  caput 
rerum,  Scipio  dux  summus  in  ilia  est  {Africa,  III,  281); 
oh  summe  virorum  Scipio  {Fam.,  XXIII,  i) ;  maximum 
ducem  {De  viris  ill.,  I,  456).  The  story  of  Scipio's 
being  as  duly  observant  of  his  sacred  duties  as  his 
age  permitted  is  told  in  the  Africa,  Book  IV,  11. 
115-22.  After  speaking  of  Scipio's  divine  origin, 
Laelius  continues: 

"For  at  sunrise,  after  all  others  have  been  removed 
to  a  distance,  he  is  wont  to  enter  alone  into  that  most 
venerable  shrine  which  rests  upon  our  Hill  Tarpeian — 
the  Temple  of  Jupiter,  to  whom  the  priests,  with  due 
religious  rites,  offer  worship  in  trembling  awe.  But 
alone  and  fearlessly  he  draws  the  portals,  bars  the 
threshold,  and  approaches  the  altar.  There  he  lingers 
as  if  in  lengthy  communion  with  the  god,  and  then  he 
suddftoly  issues  forth;  and  thou  mightest  behold  his 
features  glow  with  high  courage,  and  his  eyes  flash 
with  a  fire  celestial." 

Petrarca  repeats  the  story  in  Rer.  mem..  Ill,  i,  cap. 
6,  p.  431;  and  in  De  vita  solitaria,  Lib.  II,  sec.  IX,  cap. 
5.    The  whole  is  based  upon  Livy,  xxvi.  19  and  Val. 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  57 

Max.,  i.  2,  2,  with  such  minor  sources  as  Gellius  and 
the  Auctor  de  viris  ill. 

22.  Suetonius,  Aug.  78,  79. 

23.  Cicero,  Tusc.  Disp.,  I,  3. 

24.  Compare  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil,  stanza  2, 
vss.  4-6. 

25.  In  a  letter  dated  July  15,  1347,  Cola  di  Rienzo 
says,  in  speaking  of  himself:  "  Cola  di  Rienzo  was  wont 
to  live  a  far  more  tranquil  life  than  the  Tribune:"  midto 
vivebat  quietius  Cola  Laurentii  quam  tribunus  (Gabrielli, 
Epistolario,  No.  12,  p.  31,  1.  39). 

26.  Compare  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil,  last  stanza, 
vs.  3 :  pensoso  piii,  d'altrui  che  di  s^  stesso,  to  which  we 
may  add  the  statement  of  the  Vita,  II,  chap.  23,  col. 
975:  "There  never  was  such  another  man.  He  alone 
bore  all  the  weighty  thoughts  of  the  Romans." 

27.  This  rapid  survey  is  typical  of  Petrarca  whenever 
he  endeavors  to  instruct  his  readers.  It  is  just  such 
passages  as  these  that  have  brought  upon  our  author 
the  charges  of  pedant  and  of  preacher.  But,  unfor- 
tunately, those  who  make  the  charge  seem  to  forget 
that  in  the  earlier  half  of  the  14th  century,  Petrarca 
was  perhaps  the  only  scholar  who  could  correctly  cite 
the  classics;  that  he  was  the  only  one  who  intelligently 
interpreted  both  the  letter  and  the  spirit  of  the  classical 
authors.  They  forget  that  his  correspondents  and  his 
friends  looked  forward  to  a  letter  from  the  Poet 
Laureate  as  though  it  were  a  letter  from  an  ancient 
Roman,  and  that  they  preserved  all  such  epistles  for 
the  purpose  of  referring  to  them  later  on,  and  of 
drawing  their  information  thence  as  if  from  an  ancient 


58        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

text,  or  from  a  dictionary  and  encyclopaedia  of  classical 
antiquities.  In  acceding  to  this  tacit,  nay  expressed 
understanding,  and  in  thus  disseminating  knowledge, 
Petrarca  was  fulfilling  his  mission  to  the  full,  and  was 
assisting  to  remove  the  incubus  of  error  then  weighing 
upon  the  European  intellect. 

Examples  of  a  similar  historical  survey  can  easily  be 
found  in  Petrarca's  works.  To  refer  to  but  one, 
consult  his  epic,  the  Africa,  Book  III,  11.  527-772.  Of 
these,  lines  534,  623-30  refer  to  Regulus;  536-39,  to 
the  Scipios;  547-95,  to  Curtius;  596-622,  to  the  Decii. 

28.  For  a  complete  analysis  of  the  story  of  the  Fabii, 
see  Pais,  Ancient  Legends  of  Roman  History  (trans,  by 
M.  E.  Cosenza),  chap,  ix:  ''The  Fabii  at  the  River 
Cremera,  and  the  Spartans  at  Thermopylae." 

29.  Cf.  Livy,  vi.  20,  12.  For  an  analysis  of  the 
legends  connected  with  the  "Rock,"  consult  Pais,  op. 
cit.,  chaps,  v  and  vi,  respectively  entitled  "The  Story 
of  the  Maid  Tarpeia"  and  "The  Saxum  Tarpeium." 

30.  Compare  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil,  stanza  5, 
vss.  10-14  (11-14  in  the  English  translation  cited  in 
n.  32). 

31.  It  will  be  remembered  that  Petrarca  had  been 
officially  admitted  to  Roman  citizenship  at  the  time  of 
his  coronation,  on  Easter  Sunday,  April  8,  1341. 

32.  The  promise  made  in  these  words  has  caused 
endless  discussion  among  scholars.  Those  who  have 
written  lives  of  Cola  di  Rienzo  (among  others  Papen- 
cordt  and  Zeffirino  Re)  are  unanimous  in  maintaining 
that  the  poem  here  promised  must  be  identified  with 
the  famous  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil,  which  (they  further- 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  59 

more  argue)  was  addressed  to  the  Roman  tribune 
(Torraca,  Discussioni  e  ricerche  leUerarie,  Livorno, 
1888,  p.  41). 

In  his  note  to  this  letter,  Fracassetti  argues  (5,  p. 
414)  that  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil  was  in  fact 
addressed  to  Rienzo  (cf.  2,  pp.  190,  198),  and  that  it 
represents  a  preliminary  keeping  of  his  promise  on  the 
part  of  Petrarca.  He  holds  that  Petrarca  wrote  the 
Italian  Canzone  first,  intending  to  follow  it  up  with  a 
more  worthy  effort  which  was  to  have  been  composed 
in  what  Petrarca  deemed  the  more  dignified  and 
majestic  Latin.  Fracassetti  further  maintains  that  the 
concluding  words  of  this  Hortatoria  refer  to  the  Latin 
poem  which  never  materialized.  To  strengthen  his 
position,  he  cites  a  parallel  from  Petrarca's  earlier 
compositions;  namely,  that  Petrarca  wrote  the 
sonnet  Vinse  Annihal  (cf.  Greg.,  VI,  p.  187,  n.  i)  to 
celebrate  the  victory  won  by  Stefanuccio  Colonna  over 
the  Orsini  at  Castel  Cesario,  on  May  22,  1333  (cf. 
Fam.,  Ill,  3),  and  that  he  followed  it  up  with  a  Latin 
poem  on  the  same  subject  (cf.  Fam.,  Ill,  4). 

Torraca  {op.  cit.,  chap,  i:  Cola  di  Rienzo  e  la  canzone 
Spirto  Gentil  di  Francesco  Petrarca,  pp.  1-87)  does  not 
think  it  necessary  to  suppose  a  second  poem  that  was 
to  have  been  written  in  Latin,  pointing  out  that 
Petrarca  wrote  the  Canzone  to  the  princes  of  Italy, 
and  the  one  celebrating  the  victory  of  the  Da  Correg- 
gio,  both  in  Italian  (op.  cit.,  p.  41).  Torraca,  however, 
does  not  identify  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil  with  the 
poem  promised  in  the  closing  words  of  the  Hortatoria, 
on    the   ground  that  the  poem  was  promised  only 


6o       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

"provided  you  [sc,  the  Romans]  will  not  deceive  my 
hopes  and  wishes,  and  will  not  deny  me  perseverance  in 
your  glorious  undertaking,"  whereas  the  Canzone 
alludes  only  to  a  glorious  beginning,  and  bears  every 
trace  of  having  been  composed  in  haste  (op.  cit.,  p.  42). 
His  conclusion  is  that  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil  is  a 
pendant  to  the  Hortatoria,  the  latter  celebrating  the 
fact  that  liberty  had  been  won,  the  former  pointing 
out  for  what  ends  that  liberty  should  be  employed. 

There  seems  to  be  but  a  very  slight  difference  be- 
tween the  positions  held  by  Torraca  and  by  Fracassetti. 
They  agree  that  the  Canzone  and  the  Hortatoria  treat 
the  same  subject-matter;  that  one  is  a  pendant  to  the 
other  (Torraca,  op.  cit.,  p.  41);  that  the  Canzone  was 
hurriedly  written,  and  hence  was  perhaps  meant  to 
accompany  the  Hortatoria  {ibid.,  p.  42);  and,  finally, 
that  both  the  Canzone  and  the  Hortatoria  are  addressed 
to  Cola  di  Rienzo.  The  one  difference  of  opinion  lies 
in  their  attitude  toward  the  question  whether  or  not 
the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil  represents  in  any  way  the 
conditional  promise  made  in  the  Hortatoria.  Fracas- 
setti (d.5.)  answers  the  question  in  the  affirmative; 
Torraca,  in  the  negative  {op.  cit.,  p.  41). 

Until  more  convincing  arguments  are  advanced  and 
proofs  are  offered,  it  seems  almost  impossible  not  to 
agree  with  Fracassetti.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  an 
exhaustive  study  will  soon  be  made  which  will  answer 
once  and  for  all  the  vexed  questions  of  the  date  when 
the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil  was  composed,  and  to  whom 
it  was  addressed. 

The  contents  of  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil  are  so 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  6i 

closely  akin  to  the  spirit  of  the  Hortatoria,  and  the 
poem  itself  is  so  stirring  and  so  full  of  Petrarca's  strong 
patriotism,  that  we  shall  here  give  it  in  full  (translated 
by  Major  Macgregor,  in  The  Sonnets,  Triumphs,  and 
Other  Poems  of  Petrarch,  London,  1893,  pp.  54-56) : 

Spirit  heroic!  who  with  fire  divine 
Kindlest  those  limbs,  awhile  which  pilgrim  hold 
On  earth  a  Chieftain  gracious,  wise,  and  bold; 
Since,  rightly,  now  the  rod  of  state  is  thine 
Rome  and  her  wandering  children  to  confine, 
And  yet  reclaim  her  to  the  old  good  way: 
To  thee  I  speak,  for  elsewhere  not  a  ray 
Of  virtue  can  I  find,  extinct  below, 
Nor  one  who  feels  of  evil  deeds  the  shame. 
Why  Italy  still  waits,  and  what  her  aim 
I  know  not,  callous  to  her  proper  woe, 
Indolent,  aged,  slow, 

Still  will  she  sleep  ?    Is  none  to  rouse  her  found  ? 
Oh!  that  my  wakening  hands  were  through  her 
tresses  wound. 

So  grievous  is  the  spell,  the  trance  so  deep, 
Loud  though  we  call,  my  hope  is  faint  that  e'er 
She  yet  will  waken  from  her  heavy  sleep : 
But  not,  methinks,  without  some  better  end 
Was  this  our  Rome  intrusted  to  thy  care. 
Who  surest  may  revive  and  best  defend. 
Fearlessly  then  upon  that  reverend  head, 
'Mid  her  dishevel'd  locks,  thy  fingers  spread, 
And  lift  at  length  the  sluggard  from  the  dust; 
I,  day  and  night,  who  her  prostration  mourn. 
For  this,  in  thee,  have  fix'd  my  certain  trust. 
That,  if  her  sons  yet  turn, 
And  if  their  eyes  ever  to  true  honour  raise, 
The  glory  is  reserved  for  thy  illustrious  days! 


62       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Her  ancient  walls,  which  still  with  fear  and  love 
The  world  admires,  whene'er  it  calls  to  mind 
The  days  of  Eld,  and  turns  to  look  behind; 
Her  hoar  and  cavern'd  monuments  above 
The  dust  of  men,  whose  fame,  until  the  world 
In  dissolution  sink,  can  never  fail; 
Her  all,  that  in  one  ruin  now  lies  hurl'd, 
Hopes  to  have  heal'd  by  thee  its  every  ail. 
O  faithful  Brutus!  noble  Scipios  dead! 
To  you  what  triumph,  where  ye  now  are  blest, 
If  of  our  worthy  choice  the  fame  have  spread: 
And  how  his  laurell'd  crest. 
Will  old  Fabricius  rear,  with  joy  elate, 
That  his  own  Rome  again  shall  beauteous  be 
and  great! 

And,  if  for  things  of  earth  its  care  Heaven  show. 
The  souls  who  dwell  above  in  joy  and  peace. 
And  their  mere  mortal  frames  have  left  below, 
Implore  thee  this  long  civil  strife  may  cease, 
Which  kills  all  confidence,  nips  every  good, 
Which  bars  the  way  to  many  a  roof,  where  men 
Once  holy,  hospitable  lived,  the  den 
Of  fearless  rapine  now  and  frequent  blood, 
Whose  doors  to  virtue  only  are  denied. 
While  beneath  plunder'd  Saints,  in  outraged  fanes 
Plots  Faction,  and  Revenge  the  altar  stains; 
And,  contrast  sad  and  wide, 
The  very  bells  which  sweetly  wont  to  fling 
Summons  to  prayer  and  praise  now  Battle's  tocsin 
ring! 

Pale  weeping  women,  and  a  friendless  crowd 
Of  tender  years,  infirm  and  desolate  Age, 
Which  hates  itself  and  its  superfluous  days, 
With  each  blest  order  to  religion  vow'd. 
Whom  works  of  love  through  lives  of  want  engage, 


COLA  BECOMES  TRIBUNE  63 

To  thee  for  help  their  hands  and  voices  raise; 
While  our  poor  panic-stricken  land  displays 
The  thousand  wounds  which  now  so  mar  her  frame, 
That  e'en  from  foes  compassion  they  command; 
Or  more  if  Christendom  thy  care  may  claim. 
Lo!  God's  own  house  on  fire,  while  not  a  hand 
Moves  to  subdue  the  flame: 
— Heal  thou  these  wounds,  this  feverish  tumult 

end, 
And  on  the  holy  work  Heaven's  blessing  shall 

descend! 

Often  against  our  marble  Column  high 
Wolf,  Lion,  Bear,  proud  Eagle,  and  base  Snake 
Even  to  their  own  injury  insult  shower; 
Lifts  against  thee  and  theirs  her  mournful  cry, 
The  noble  Dame  who  calls  thee  here  to  break 
Away  the  evil  weeds  which  will  not  flower. 
A  thousand  years  and  more !  and  gallant  men 
There  fix'd  her  seat  in  beauty  and  in  power; 
The  breed  of  patriot  hearts  has  fail'd  since  then ! 
And,  in  their  stead,  upstart  and  haughty  now, 
A  race,  which  ne'er  to  her  in  reverence  bends, 
Her  husband,  father  thou! 
Like  care  from  thee  and  counsel  she  attends. 
As  o'er  his  other  works  the  Sire  of  all  extends. 

'Tis  seldom  e'en  that  with  our  fairest  scheme 

Some  adverse  fortune  will  not  mix,  and  mar 

With  instant  ill  ambition's  noblest  dreams; 

But  thou,  once  ta'en  thy  path,  so  walk  that  I 

May  pardon  her  past  faults,  great  as  they  are, 

If  now  at  least  she  give  herself  the  lie. 

For  never,  in  all  memory,  as  to  thee. 

To  mortal  man  so  sure  and  straight  the  way 

Of  everlasting  honour  open  lay, 

For  thine  the  power  and  wiU,  if  right  I  see. 


64       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

To  lift  our  empire  to  its  old  proud  state. 

Let  this  thy  glory  be ! — 

They  succour'd  her  when  young,  and  strong,  and 

great, 
He,  in  her  weak  old  age,  warded  the  stroke  of  Fate. 

Forth  on  thy  way!  my  Song,  and,  where  the  bold 

Tarpeian  lifts  his  brow,  shouldst  thou  behold. 

Of  others'  weal  more  thoughtful  than  his  own, 

The  chief,  by  general  Italy  revered. 

Tell  him  from  me,  to  whom  he  is  but  known 

As  one  to  Virtue  and  by  Fame  endear'd. 

Till  stamp'd  upon  his  heart  the  sad  truth  be. 

That,  day  by  day  to  thee. 

With  suppliant  attitude  and  streaming  eyes, 

For  justice  and  relief  our  seven-hill'd  city  cries. 


CHAPTER  III 

The  preceding  letter  was  written  about  June 
24-27,  1347;  accordingly,  it  must  have  reached 
Rome  about  July  1 2-15.  At  this  time  Cola  and 
the  Prefect  Giovanni  di  Vico  were  at  war. 
Peace  negotiations  were  begun  on  July  16;  and 
the  Roman  army  returned  to  the  city  on  July 
22.  In  the  midst  of  such  pressing  occupations. 
Cola  could  not  find  time  in  which  to  answer 
Petrarca's  letter  of  exhortation.  On  July  27, 
however,  he  began  to  draw  up  a  report  for  the 
Pope,  the  sending  of  which  was  delayed  by  the 
lack  of  messengers;  and  on  July  28,  finally,  he 
wrote  the  following  letter  acknowledging  the 
receipt  of  Petrarca's  Hortatoria. 


COLA  DI  RIENZO  TO  FRANCESCO 
PETRARCA 

(EpistoL,  XV) 

Nicholas,  the  severe  and  clement,  by  the 
grace  of  our  most  merciful  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
tribune  of  liberty,  of  peace,  and  of  justice,  and 
illustrious  deHverer  of  the  holy  Roman 
Republic,    sends    greetings    and    wishes    for 

6s 


66       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

abundant  joys  and  honors  to  Messer  Francesco 
Petrarca  of  illustrious  fame,  poet  laureate  most 
worthy,  and  his  well-beloved  fellow-citizen/ 

Your*  numerous  and  most  charming  letters, 
so  eloquently  written  and  so  thickly  crowded 
with  truthful  and  inspiring  arguments,  have 
filled  with  pleasure  the  eyes  of  the  reader  and 
the  ears  of  the  hearer.  When  the  contents 
thereof  had  been  more  deeply  and  maturely 
considered,  the  intellect  feasted  upon  it  with 
greater  pleasure.  In  your  very  gratifying 
letter  of  exhortation,  you  have  summoned  the 
praiseworthy  examples  of  the  heroes  of  old  to 
spur  us  on  to  emulate  their  virtuous  deeds, 
whereby  our  spirits  are  and  have  been  thor- 
oughly revived. 

We  clearly  discern  from  your  letters  the  ful- 
ness of  your  love  for  the  City  and  your  anxiety 
for  its  welfare.  The  most  positive  proofs, 
indeed,  of  the  sincerity  and  the  depth  of  the 
affection  which  you  cherish  for  us  and  for  the 
City  are  your  human-kindness  and  sagacity, 
with  which  I  became  personally  acquainted.^ 
We  and  all  the  Romans  feel  warmly  attached 
to  you,  and  the  more  sincerely  do  we  pledge 
ourselves  to  serve  your  glory  and  advantage. 
Would  that  you  were  present  at  Rome  in  very 


COLA  ON  PETRARCA'S  "HORTATORIA"  67 

person!  For,  just  as  a  most  precious  stone 
adorns  the  ring  of  gold,  so  your  illustrious 
presence  would  adorn  and  embellish  the  Nour- 
ishing City. 

Liberty  is  now  the  very  Hfe  and  breath  of  the 
Romans.  Its  sweetness  is  tasted  anew  after 
the  lapse  of  ages.  After  suffering  for  so  long 
the  error  of  servitude,  every  Roman  would  now 
sooner  permit  life  itself  to  be  torn  from  his 
heart  than  to  be  reduced  once  again  to  most 
bitter  slavery — for  all  things  easily  revert  to 
their  natural  state,  and  the  city  stands  forth 
once  again  as  the  very  head  and  fountain  of 
liberty,  the  city  which  for  so  long  a  period,  to 
our  mortification,  has  experienced  the  irreverent 
lot  of  a  handmaid.  Wherefore,  the  Romans, 
snatched  from  the  noose  which  was  about  to 
strangle  them,  make  a  joyful  noise  imto  the 
Lord,  and  shun  no  death,  no  dangers,  in  defense 
of  their  re-estabhshed  liberty.  We  ourselves, 
moreover,  are  most  eager  to  do  all  things  which 
pertain  to  your  advantage  and  to  your  glory. 

Given  on  the  Campidoglio,  where  we  live  a 
righteous  life  under  the  reign  of  justice,  on  the 
twenty-eighth  day  of  the  month  of  July,  in  the 
fifteenth  indiction,  and  in  the  first  year  of  the 
City's  freedom. 


68       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

NOTES 

1.  See  chap,  ii,  n.  31. 

2.  Lest  the  reader  should  be  confused  by  our  use  of 
the  plural  in  this  letter,  when  the  singular  is  used  in  all 
the  other  letters,  we  shall  cite  two  passages  from  the 
correspondence  of  Petrarca,  which  throw  great  light 
upon  the  custom  of  his  times  as  well  as  upon  the  rule 
which  he  himself  followed. 

The  first  passage  is  taken  from  a  letter  to  Neri 
Morando,  written  at  Milan,  February  18,  1356  (Var., 
XXXII,  Frac,  III,  pp.  380-81): 

"  I  now  begin  to  answer  thy  letter.  I  shall  touch  but 
lightly  upon  the  fact  that,  toward  its  beginning,  thou 
excusest  thyself  to  me  as  though  thou  hadst  been  guilty 
of  a  dreadful  crime,  of  sacrilege  almost,  because,  in  thy 
correspondence,  thou  hast  addressed  me  in  the  singular 
number.  In  consequence  of  which  thou  changest 
style,  as  if  I  too  were  in  need  of  that  flattery  which  the 
fortunes  of  Julius  Caesar  first  inflicted  upon  the  world ; 
as  if,  moreover,  it  were  unseemly  for  thee  to  write  in 
that  more  simple  and  robust  style  employed  by  all  the 
ancient  authors. 

"I  have  treated  this  topic  at  greater  length  else- 
where, hence  I  shall  merely  touch  upon  it  here.  If  I 
have  ever,  I  shall  not  say  deserved,  but  acquired  any 
authority  with  thee,  thou  may  est  consider  me  too  as 
thy  most  recent  authority  for  such  usage.  For  I  am 
accustomed  to  employ  the  singular  number  in  address- 
ing not  only  my  friends  (whom  I  address  as  equals) 
but  even  kings  and  pontiffs  and  Caesar  himself,  all  of 
whom  it  is  both  right  and  just  to  address  in  more 
respectful  terms.  But  as  for  me,  I  do  not  judge  that 
true  respect  is  to  be  found  in  hypocrisy.  To  lie  to 
princes  in  the  terms  which  are  now  the  general  rule  is  a 


COLA  ON  PETRARCA'S  "HORTATORIA"  69 

custom  which  (as  Lucan  asserts)  had  origin  during  the 
lifetime  of  Julius  Caesar. 

"I  can  discern,  however,  the  reasons  which  prompted 
thee  to  revert  to  the  use  of  the  plural,  nor  dost  thou 
conceal  them  from  me.  Thou  wert  disturbed  by  those 
less  important  letters  of  mine  in  which  I  seem  to  have 
abandoned  the  use  of  the  singiilar.  I  shall  have  to 
relate  to  thee  the  reason  for  this,  that  thou  mayest  feel 
no  concern  hereafter.  My  friend,  I  adhere  closely  to 
the  use  of  the  singular  whenever  I  treat  subjects  of 
some  importance.  I  do  not  say  of  great  importance, 
because  such  subjects  are  foreign  to  these  pressing  and 
fleeting  times,  and  are  beyond  my  powers  and  my  pen, 
which  thou  courteously  didst  prefer  to  designate  as 
heavenly,  though  thou  mightest  more  correctly  have 
styled  it  rude  and  uncultivated.  On  the  contrary,  as 
often  as  the  force  of  circumstances  obliges  me  to  turn  to 
plebeian  and  commonplace  topics — topics  which  I  deem 
unworthy  of  style  at  all — I  do  not  hesitate  to  employ  a 
plebeian  and  commonplace  dress,  in  order  that  I  may 
not,  perchance,  expend  more  effort  upon  the  choice  of 
words  than  is  due  to  the  nature  of  the  subject-matter. 

"This,  and  nothing  else,  I  assure  thee,  is  the  reason 
which  prompted  me  to  employ  the  plural  in  the  less 
important  communications  to  which  I  have  already 
alluded.  This  has  been  my  rule  in  the  past.  As  for 
the  future,  no  matter  what  the  subject  under  con- 
sideration, no  matter  what  the  style  adopted,  I  shall 
certainly  not  tolerate  the  use  of  the  plural  in  addressing 
a  friend  or  any  single  individual.  This  rule  I  shall 
adopt,  firstly  for  my  own  satisfaction,  that  I  may  not 
lie  to  my  friends;  secondly,  and  chiefly,  that  thy  style 
may  not  be  injured  by  my  bad  example,  seeing  that  I 
seem  to  have  no  slight  influence  upon  thee.  If  thou 
lovest  me,  therefore,  return  to  the  correct  style,  and 
let  us  endeavor  to  satisfy,  not  the  ears  of  the  vulgar 
herd,  but  our  own  dignity." 


70       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

In  later  years,  Petrarca  had  occasion  to  make  a 
similar  plea  for  the  simple  style  of  the  classical  period. 
In  a  letter  to  the  Bishop  of  Olmiitz  (Johann  Ocko  von 
Olmiitz),  written  in  1363,  he  says  {Fam.,  XXIII,  14, 
Frac,  III,  p.  227): 

"I  was  astonished  in  no  slight  degree  by  thy  letter. 
In  the  first  place,  its  style  was  new,  and  one  to  which  I 
am  not  accustomed.  Thou  addressest  me  in  the 
pliu-al,  though  I  am  but  one;  and  would,  indeed,  that 
I  were  at  one  with  myself,  and  not  torn  and  wasted  by 
the  constant  battling  of  conflicting  opinions.  I  shall 
not  waver  from  the  style  which  all  the  learned  men  of 
old  employed,  and  which  we  ourselves  have  long 
employed  in  our  correspondence  with  each  other.  I 
execrate  the  flatteries  and  absurdities  of  today.  On 
this  topic,  with  due  modesty  and  in  confidence,  I  shall 
make  to  thee  the  boast  that  I  seem  to  be  the  only  one, 
or  at  any  rate  the  first  one,  in  Italy  to  have  abandoned 
the  style  of  our  fathers,  which  had  become  efifeminate 
and  weak,  and  to  have  forced  it  back  to  its  virile  and 
healthy  state.  And  I  shall  continue  to  employ  this 
style,  unless  I  shall  become  aware  that  thy  wishes  are 
diametrically  opposed  to  it." 

Petrarca,  however,  did  not  adhere  with  absolute 
fidelity  to  the  rule  which  he  had  set  himself.  For 
occasional  lapses,  see  Fracassetti,  in  his  note  to  Var., 
XXXII,  Vol.  5,  p.  337. 

3.  This  is  evidently  a  reference  to  the  personal 
acquaintance  established  between  the  poet  and  the 
Tribune  at  Avignon,  in  1343. 


CHAPTER  IV 

Before  the  days  of  international  postal 
service,  and  when  the  highways  were  as  insecure 
as  was  the  general  rule  during  the  14th  century, 
the  carrying-on  of  anything  like  an  accurate 
correspondence  between  two  cities  so  widely 
separated  as  Rome  and  Avignon  must  have 
been  difficult  in  the  extreme.  A  further  diffi- 
culty for  the  modern  student  Hes  in  the  fact 
that  many  of  Petrarca's  letters  are  undated. 
To  the  following  letter  we  have  given  the  date 
July  24-26,  1347,  for  reasons  that  will  be 
advanced  in  the  notes.  The  letter  itself  does 
not  contain  references  to  current  events  at 
Rome,  for  the  reason  that  Cola's  report  to  the 
Pope  in  regard  to  Vico's  submission  was  not 
dispatched  from  Rome  earher  than  August  5, 
During  this  interval,  Petrarca  wrote  frequent 
letters,  seizing  upon  the  sHghtest  pretext,  com- 
municating to  the  Tribune  his  every  thought, 
and  describing  to  him  scenes  and  occurrences  in 
the  household  of  the  Pope. 


71 


72        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

TO  COLA  DI  RIENZO,  TRIBUNE  OF  THE 
ROMAN  PEOPLE 

(Var.,  XXXVIII) 

I  shall  not  cease  to  write  to  thee  daily/  in 
order  that  thou  mayest  be  the  first  to  know  all 
my  anxious  thoughts  concerning  thee,  and  that 
I  may  place  before  thee  all  my  uneasiness  of 
mind  for  thy  welfare.  I  do  not,  however, 
expect  any  answers  from  thee.  Considering  thy 
important  and  overwhelming  duties,  I  confess 
that  I  desire  an  answer  rather  than  expect  one. 
I  realize  this  serious  fact:  that  thou  hast 
elevated  thyseK  to  a  very  high  pinnacle,  where 
thou  art  subject  to  the  gaze,  the  criticism,  and 
the  judgment  not  merely  of  the  Italians,  but  of 
all  mankind,  and  not  merely  of  those  who  now 
live,  but  of  all  the  generations  yet  unborn.  I 
am  conscious  that  thou  hast  assumed  a  heavy 
burden,  but  at  the  same  time  a  noble  and  an 
honorable  one.  Thou  hast  set  thyself  an  extra- 
ordinary and  glorious  task.  In  my  opinion, 
never  will  the  present  age,  never  will  posterity 
cease  to  speak  of  thee.  The  opinions  of  other 
men  are  vain  and  discordant,  changing  in 
obedience  to  the  caprices  of  each  and  every 
individual.    But  thy  resolution  stands  as  firm 


EFFECT  OF  COLA'S  LETTERS  73 

as  that  very  rock  of  the  Capitol  on  which  thou 
dwellest.^  It,  too,  remains  unshaken  by  the 
winds  that  blow. 

I  do  not  know  whether  thou  art  aware,  or 
suspectest,  or  art  entirely  ignorant  of  a  certain 
fact.  Do  not  suppose  for  a  moment  that  the 
letters  which  thou  writest  from  Rome  remain 
long  in  the  possession  of  those  to  whom  they  are 
addressed.  On  the  contrary,  everyone  hastens 
to  make  a  copy  of  them  with  as  much  earnest- 
ness, and  circulates  them  about  the  court  of  the 
Pontiff  with  as  much  zeal,  as  if  they  were  sent 
not  by  a  man  of  our  own  race,  but  by  an  inhabi- 
tant of  another  world  or  of  the  antipodes.  All 
press  round  to  interpret  thy  epistles;  and  never 
was  an  oracle  of  the  Delphic  Apollo  turned  and 
twisted  into  so  many  different  meanings.  I 
therefore  praise  the  caution  thou  hast  hitherto 
displayed.  Up  to  this  time  thou  hast  exerted 
great  care  in  moderating  thy  tone,  and  hast 
succeeded  beyond  reproach.  I  urge  thee  and 
beg  of  thee  to  display  greater  and  greater  care 
in  the  future.  Thy  words  reveal  the  great  soul 
of  the  writer  and  the  majesty  of  the  Roman 
people,  but  neither  the  reverence  nor  the  respect 
due  to  the  Roman  Pontiff  is  obscured  and  for- 
gotten.   It  is  fitting  that  thy  eloquence  and  thy 


74       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

wisdom  should  be  able  to  blend  harmoniously 
two  concepts  which  seem  to  be  mutually 
exclusive,  but  which  are  not  so  in  reaUty.^  In 
thy  letters  each  concept  maintains  its  own 
proper  dignity.  I  have  witnessed  several  per- 
sons struck  with  amazement  as  they  read,  when 
they  saw  thy  self-assurance  strugghng  with  thy 
modesty  so  as  to  leave  but  a  doubtful  victory; 
astonished  when  they  saw  that  neither  debasing 
fear  nor  sweUing  pride  found  admittance  to 
that  contest."  I  have  seen  others  perplexed  as 
to  whether  they  should  more  deeply  admire  thy 
deeds,  or  thy  words,  and  unhesitatingly  call 
thee  Brutus^  for  thy  boon  of  hberty,  and  for 
thine  eloquence  Cicero,  whom  Catullus  of 
Verona^  addressed  as  "most  eloquent." 

Persevere,  therefore,  as  thou  hast  begim. 
Write  always  as  if  all  men  were  to  read,  and  not 
merely  read,  but,  indeed,  as  if  they  were  about 
to  set  out  from  every  shore  and  bear  thy 
message  to  every  land.'^  Thou  hast  laid  the 
strongest  of  foundations:  truth,  peace,  justice, 
Hberty.  Build  upon  these.  Whatever  struc- 
ture thou  dost  erect  will  remain  firm;  and 
whosoever  will  hurl  himseh  against  it  will  be 
dashed  to  pieces.  He  who  wars  against  truth 
will  declare  himself  a  liar;    against  peace,  a 


EFFECT  OF  COLA'S  LETTERS      75 

restless  spirit;  against  justice,  a  dishonest  man; 
and  if  against  liberty,  an  arrogant  and  shameless 
wretch. 

I  laud  also  the  fact  that,  no  matter  to  what 
corner  of  the  earth  thou  writest,  thou  dost  keep 
copies  of  thy  letters,^  so  that  what  thou  art 
about  to  say  may  be  in  harmony  with  what 
thou  hast  already  said,  and  so  that,  if  the 
occasion  render  it  necessary,  thou  mayest 
compare  thy  letters  with  the  repHes  thereto. 
I  discovered  this  custom  of  thine  from  the  dating 
of  thy  letters.  Thy  signing  them  so  gloriously, 
"In  the  first  year  of  the  City's  freedom," 
smacks  of  a  purpose  to  reform  the  annals  of  the 
state.  The  expression  pleases  me,  and  gives 
me  dehghtful  comfort.'  And  since  thou  art 
occupied  in  the  performing  of  noble  deeds,  until 
thou  wilt  have  found  a  genius  capable  of 
recounting  thy  deeds  in  worthy  language,  I 
promise  thee  the  service  of  my  feeble  intel- 
lect and  of  my  pen — ^if  God  permit  me  to 
hve.  In  this  way  I  shall  (to  borrow  the 
words  of  Livy)  perform  my  part  in  enhancing 
the  memory  of  the  noblest  race  in  the  world." 
Nor  will  my  Africanus  disdain  to  yield  to  thee 
for  a  short  while."  Farewell,  most  illustrious 
man. 


76       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

NOTES 

1.  There  are,  in  all,  eight  letters  which  are  addressed 
directly  to  Cola.  Petrarca's  last  letter  to  him  is  Fam., 
VII,  7,  dated  Genoa,  November  29,  1347,  when  the 
poet's  faith  in  the  Tribune  began  to  waver.  In  that 
letter  Petrarca  reproaches  Cola  for  his  wayward 
actions,  and  closes  with  the  following  stinging  rebuke: 
"Consider  all  this,  and  you  will  realize  that  you  are 
not  the  master  of  the  Republic,  but  its  servant."  If 
Petrarca  did  indeed  write  to  Cola  daily,  or  as  frequently 
as  a  reasonable  interpretation  of  that  word  would 
warrant,  it  is  a  thousand  pities  that  the  letters  have 
been  lost.  Let  us  hope  that  they  are  still  buried  in  the 
libraries  of  Europe,  and  that  they  are  patiently  await- 
ing the  search  of  the  scholar. 

2.  Compare  the  dating  of  Cola's  answer  to  Petrarca. 

3.  Filippini  {Stvdi  storici,  XI,  p.  8)  considers  this 
ability  of  Cola  to  blend  seemingly  irreconcilable  ideas 
as  one  of  the  surest  indications  that  Cola  had  designedly 
adopted  a  policy  of  duplicity  in  his  intercourse  with  the 
Avignonese  Curia.  Filippini,  indeed,  whose  thesis  is 
that  Cola  wished  to  strip  the  papacy  of  its  temporal 
power  (in  the  14th  century!),  maintains  in  the  course  of 
both  his  lengthy  articles  (see  Bibliography)  that  Cola 
constantly  wrote  to  the  Pontiff  in  one  tone,  and  to  the 
cities  and  to  the  princes  of  Italy  in  a  far  different  one. 

4.  It  may  reasonably  be  deduced  from  this  statement 
that,  at  the  time  when  this  letter  was  written.  Cola's 
actions  had  not  yet  irritated  the  Pope,  and  that  the 
relations  between  Rome  and  Avignon  had  not  yet 
reached  the  straining  point. 


EFFECT  OF  COLA'S  LETTERS      77 

5.  Rienzo  is  here  compared  with  Brutus,  not  for 
having  freed  Rome  from  the  tyranny  of  a  monarchy, 
but  for  having  rescued  the  Romans  from  the  yoke  of 
the  foreign  barons.  The  distinction  correctly  repre- 
sents the  attitude  of  the  Curia  at  this  time.  It 
countenanced  and  furthered  Cola's  prosecution  of  the 
barons,  whose  lawless  conduct  the  Curia  had  not  been, 
and  was  not,  strong  enough  to  curb;  and  at  the  same 
time  it  claimed  that  Cola's  deeds  were  all  performed  in 
the  name  of  the  church,  whose  head  was,  of  course,  the 
legitimate  monarch  of  Rome. 

6.  Catullus,  C,  49. 

7.  Brizzolara  {Sttidi  storici,  VIII,  p.  433)  regards 
this  as  a  veiled  warning  to  Cola  of  the  increasing 
suspicions  and  hostility  of  the  Curia. 

8.  Petrarca  himself  was  wont  to  keep  copies  of  his 
letters,  and  for  the  same  purpose  as  that  which  he  now 
commends  in  Cola.  Consult  Cosenza,  Petrarch's 
Letters  to  Classical  Authors,  p.  10,  and  Frac,  i,  p.  245. 

9.  Compare  the  dating  of  Cola's  answer  to  Petrarca. 
The  first  letter  (among  those  now  extant)  in  which 

Cola  employed  this  phrase,  liberate  reipublice  anno 
prima ^  is  one  addressed  to  Pope  Clement  VI,  and 
dated  July  8,  1347  {Ep.,  No.  VIII,  p.  27,  11.  193-94). 
Gabrielli,  however,  points  out  {op.  cit.,  p.  20,  n.  4) 
that  there  must  have  been  earlier  letters  to  the  Pope, 
of  which  no  traces  can  be  discovered.  Surely,  by  the 
beginning  of  June,  Cola  must  have  notified  the  Pope  of 
his  elevation,  for  we  find  the  latter  recognizing  both 
Cola  and  Raymond  as  his  Rectors  at  Rome  in  a  letter 
of  June   27,    1347    (Theiner,   II,   No.    174,  p.    178). 


78       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Petrarca,  who  was  as  yet  (end  of  July  or  beginning  of 
August)  persona  grata  at  the  papal  court,  may  either 
have  seen,  or  have  heard  of  these  earlier  letters.  From 
these  he  may  have  become  acquainted  with  Cola's  use 
of  the  expression;  and  it  is  therefore  not  necessary  to 
assume,  from  Petrarca's  comment  on  this  phrase,  that 
Var.,  XXXVIII  was  written  only  after  the  receipt  of 
Cola's  letter  dated  July  28th. 

The  phrase  Datum  in  CapitoUo  must  likewise  have 
pleased  Petrarca;  for  it  must  have  reminded  him  of  the 
same  phrase  employed  in  dating  the  coronation  diploma 
given  to  him  on  the  Campidoglio  six  years  before. 
(See  Opera,  III,  p.  6:  Privilegii  laureae  receptae  a 
Francisco  Petrarcha  exemplar;  for  the  date  see  ihid.,  p. 
7.)  Petrarca  may  well  have  lingered  upon  these 
pleasing  expressions,  and  may  well  have  given  loose 
rein  to  his  memories,  dreaming  of  the  day  when  "the 
ancient  and  the  modern  eras  met  together  on  the 
Capitol  ....  and  a  new  stadium  for  the  human  spirit, 
that  which  we  are  wont  to  style  Renaissance,  was 
opened"  Q.  A.  Symonds,  Enc.  Brit.,  9th  ed.,  s.v. 
"Petrarch,"  p.  707). 

10.  Livy,  Praefatio,  3. 

11.  This  is  a  reference  to  Petrarca's  own  epic,  the 
Africa,  whose  hero  is  Scipio,  surnamed  Africanus. 
Though  the  poem  was  finished  at  about  the  time  when 
Petrarca  met  Cola  at  Avignon  (1343),  it  is  clear  from 
the  closing  statement  of  this  letter  that  Petrarca  was 
still  at  work  upon  it,  giving  it  the  polishing  touches. 
In  fact,  the  Africa  was  not  pubUshed  until  after  the 
poet's  death  (Gaspary,  Geschichte,  1,  426). 


EFFECT  OF  COLA'S  LETTERS      79 

Petrarca's  laying  aside  of  a  work  upon  which  such 
great  labor  had  been  expended  can  be  accounted  for 
only  on  the  supposition  that,  for  the  time  being  at  least, 
he  considered  his  new  undertaking  as  of  even  greater 
importance.  Perhaps  we  are  justified  in  assuming 
that  Petrarca  now  (July,  1347)  meant  to  devote  him- 
self to  the  Latin  poem  in  honor  of  Rienzo  promised  in 
the  closing  words  of  Var.,  XL VIII  (June,  1347):  "I 
shall  recall  the  Muses  from  their  exile,  and  shall  sing 
resounding  words-  in  abiding  memory  of  thy  glory — 
words  that  will  ring  throughout  the  ages"  (compare 
also  the  last  note  to  that  letter). 


CHAPTER  V 

We  can  readily  picture  Petrarca's  uneasy  life 
during  the  months  of  July  and  August,  1347. 
Upon  the  first  report  of  Cola's  elevation  to  the 
tribunate,  the  Curia  had  rejoiced — for  in  Cola 
the  church  saw  merely  a  dutiful  son  who  had 
broken  the  Hfted  horns  of  the  imruly  barons. 
The  Pope,  indeed,  had  granted  to  him  the  title 
of  Rector  only,  never  recognizing  Cola's  self- 
assumed  title  of  Tribune.  The  intention  was 
quite  plain:  Cola  should  continue  to  rule  over 
Rome  in  the  name  of  the  Pope,  and  should 
submit  all  his  proposed  actions  to  the  maturer 
judgment  of  the  Pontiff. 

The  tribune  soon  began  to  act  in  such  wise  as 
to  arouse  the  suspicions  of  the  church.  In  the 
midst  of  the  gathering  storm,  Petrarca  con- 
stantly championed  the  cause  of  his  idol;  and 
his  unrestrained  speech  estranged  many  of  his 
former  friends.  He  was  gradually  losing  that 
place  in  the  general  affection  of  which  he  was  so 
proud.  The  members  of  the  Curia  may  have 
begun  to  shim  his  presence;  or,  if  this  were 
impossible,  they  may  have  regarded  him  as  an 
enemy,  may  have  refused  the  warm  grasp  of  the 

80 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         8i 

hand,  the  welcoming  glance  of  the  eye,  and  may 
have  passed  on  in  silence.  Such  conduct 
toward  Petrarca  must  have  cut  deeply  into  his 
sensitive  soul;  but  he  continued  to  take  up 
arms  in  defense  of  the  justice  of  Cola's  tribu- 
nate and  of  the  sincerity  of  his  aims.  It  is 
to  this  period  (more  exactly,  to  August  21-25), 
to  this  beginning  of  open  hostilities  that  we 
would  assign  the  letter  here  given,  which  relates 
some  thoughts  which  occurred  to  Petrarca  one 
evening,  or  perhaps  it  was  a  vision,  for  he  him- 
self scarcely  knew  whether  he  was  fully  awake 
or  half-asleep. 


TO  COLA  Di  RIENZO,  TRIBUNE  OF  THE 
ROMAN  PEOPLE 

(Var.,  XL) 

Thou  canst  easily  conceive,  O  best  of  men,  my 
great  soHcitude  and  suspense  concerning  the 
issue  of  thy  fortunes.  I  call  God  to  witness 
that  I  seem,  somehow,  to  be  a  partaker  of  thy 
dangers,  thy  toils,  and  thy  glory.  And  in 
truth,  I  neither  wish  to  nor  can  dissemble.  As 
often  as  Fortune  brings  me  into  the  midst  of 
those  who  are  discussing  thy  affairs  with  stub- 
born insolence,  I  take  up  arms  in  thy  defense. 


82       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

This  is  a  well-known  fact,  and  the  populace  can 
testify  to  the  great  partiaUty  and  the  eagerness 
with  which  I  have  argued  against  those  who 
were  decrying  the  justice  of  thy  tribunate  and 
the  sincerity  of  thy  aims.  I  have  paid  abso- 
lutely no  regard  either  to  the  past  or  to  the 
future;  nor  have  I  heeded  whom  I  might  sting 
with  my  words  nor  whom  offend.  Thanks  to 
my  unrestrained  speech,  I  have  estranged  many 
whose  favor  I  had  gained  through  long 
intimacy.^  But  I  am  not  surprised  at  this. 
For  I  have  long  recognized  this  verse  of  Terence"" 
to  be  most  true:  "Homage  begets  friends; 
truth,  enemies."  Provided  my  conscience 
absolves  me,  however,  I  care  not  who  accuses 
me. 

I  have  wished  to  tell  thee  this  by  way  of 
preface,  that  thou  mayest  not  wonder,  per- 
chance, at  the  frequent  letters  I  write  to  thee, 
nor  deem  my  zeal  inopportune.  For  I  do  not 
regard  thy  affairs  from  afar  and  as  if  I  were 
absent.  On  the  contrary  I  feel  as  if  I  were  in 
the  very  center  of  the  battle-line,  as  if  I  were 
destined  to  conquer  in  the  great  struggle,  or  by 
it  be  conquered.  In  consequence,  my  days  are 
disturbed  by  harassing  cares,  and  my  nights  by 
dreams.    Both  asleep  and  awake  do  I  toil;  and 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         83 

never  do  I  find  a  moment  of  rest.  Under  such 
conditions  my  pen  is  my  one  consolation. 
When  I  write  I  seem  to  be  with  thee,  and  I 
hurriedly  jot  down,  not  what  is  more  pleasing  to 
hear,  but  whatever  first  occurs  to  my  mind.  I 
do  not  so  much  strive  to  write  in  a  brilliant  style 
as,  without  regard  to  style,  to  pour  into  thine 
ears  the  cares  of  my  soul  and  thus  to  hghten  my 
heavily  laden  heart.  Therefore  receive  my 
letters  with  the  expectation  of  finding  therein 
the  conversation  of  a  friend  rather  than  the 
elegant  exposition  of  thy  deeds.  Tormented  by 
my  cares,  I  think  of  thy  fortunes  day  and 
night;  and  since  the  memory  is  fleeting  and 
forgetful,  lest  my  thoughts  should  pass  away, 
I  confine  them  in  the  imyielding  meshes  of 
letters.  On  returning  home  I  record  the 
thoughts  which  accompanied  me  during  the 
day;  upon  arising  in  the  morning,  I  record  those 
of  the  night.  Indeed,  if  I  should  yield  to  my 
inner  promptings,  no  day  would  pass  without  a 
letter  from  me.^ 

I  shall  relate  to  thee  now  some  thoughts 
which  came  to  me  last  night — or  perhaps  it  was 
a  vision,  for  I  scarcely  know  whether  I  was  fuUy 
awake  or  half-asleep.  I  seemed  to  see  thee  in 
the  center  of  the  world  and  upon  a  very  high 


84       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

place,  such  as  the  topmost  ridge  of  a  precipitous 
mountain.  So  lofty  wert  thou  that  thou  didst 
seem  to  touch  the  very  skies.  In  comparison 
with  that  height,  all  the  mountains  which  I  have 
seen  in  our  own  land,  and  aU  which  I  have 
heard  or  read  of  in  foreign  lands,  would  be  but 
low  plains.  Olympus  itself,  sung  by  the  bards 
of  both  Greece  and  Rome,  would  be  a  most 
insignificant  hiU.  Clouds  floated  far  below  at 
its  feet,  and  the  sun  gleamed  not  far  above  its 
summit.  Countless  multitudes  of  brave  men 
crowded  round  thee.  Thou  thyself  wert  seated 
in  their  midst  upon  a  shining  throne,  and  wert 
elevated  above  the  rest.  Thou  wert  more 
majestic  and  resplendent  than  the  race  of  man, 
so  much  so  that  thou  didst  seem  to  have  stirred 
to  envy  Phoebus  himself.  I  moved  about  in 
the  surrounding  multitudes,  and  behold!  my 
eyes  fell  upon  endless  masses  such  as  I  could 
never  even  have  conceived  of.  I  well-nigh 
fainted  with  wonder.  In  my  utter  amazement 
I  asked  of  one  who  stood  nearest  to  me  what  was 
the  meaning  of  the  marvel  I  beheld,  or,  perhaps, 
of  the  delusion  under  which  I  labored.  For 
never,  I  beheve,  had  even  the  twentieth  part  of 
that  multitude  peopled  the  earth. 
"And  thou  wert  not  mistaken,"  answered  he 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         85 

whom  I  had  addressed.  "  Know  that  there  are 
here  assembled  not  only  all  who  are  now  living, 
but  also  aU  future  generations,  summoned 
hither  at  the  command  of  Him  in  whose  palm 
rest  the  universe,  and  the  race  of  man,  and 
centuries  untold." 

"And  what  do  they  here?  Never  have  I 
seen  men  so  attentive." 

"  They  wait  to  see  what  fortune  attends  that 
man,"  he  answered,  raising  his  eyes  to  thee, 
"because  of  whom,  as  thou  seest,  not  merely 
earth,  but  the  very  sky  and  stars  have  lost  their 
peace."  And  to  this  he  added:  "Dost  thou 
not  hear  the  rumbling  of  the  heavens?"  I 
hearkened,  and  behold!  the  deep  thunder  of  a 
distant  cloud — ^like  the  warning  of  an  approach- 
ing storm.'*  "Mars,"  he  said,  "threatens  with 
his  thunderbolt,  but  Jove  remains  calm." 

"And  what  is  thy  opinion  ?"  I  asked.  "  What 
dost  thou  suppose  will  be  the  end  of  such  great 
expectations  ?" 

"God  alone  knows,"  he  answered;  "but 
whatever  the  end,  it  will  neither  remain  un- 
noticed nor  be  passed  over  in  silence.  All  this 
great  concourse  will  ever  remember  it  and  speak 
of  it.  So  far  as  it  is  permitted  to  mortal  wisdom 
to  see  into  the  future,  the  glory  of  this  man 


86       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

will  be  vigorous  and  eternal,  provided  only  he 
bow  not  down  before  the  gales.  And  he  will  not. 
Verily,  what  has  that  man  to  fear  whose  firm 
resolve  it  is  to  die  for  the  right,  if  need  be? 
One  thing  only  I  fear — the  wavering  loyalty  of 
some  of  these  who  stand  close  round  him  on  the 
very  summit  of  the  mount,  and  who  look 
askance  upon  the  successes  of  others.  I  fear 
the  faltering  loyalty  of  those  who  aspire  to  rise 
to  pre-eminence  by  unworthy  means,  and  who 
hope  that,  upon  the  destruction  of  that  man, 
they  will  gain  his  throne.  But  they  deceive 
themselves.  If  he  beware  of  these,  he  will 
continue  in  safe  possession  of  his  power." 

"Alas!"  I  exclaimed,  "is  there  anyone  so 
savage,  so  inhuman  as  to  plot  the  fall  of  that 
very  man  under  whose  guidance  he  has  scaled 
such  glorious  heights?  What  madness,  O 
gracious  God,  what  folly  not  to  desire,  even  as 
for  oneself,  the  welfare  of  one's  preserver!  But 
what  will  they  accomphsh,"  I  asked,  "if  (and 
may  the  Omnipotent  avert  the  omen)  this  man 
fall?  Under  what  leader  will  they  find 
security  ?" 

"I  shall  answer  in  a  word,"  said  he.  "They 
wiU  rush  headlong  after  him,  down  into  the 
same  abyss  in  which  we  have  been  living  a  life 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         87 

of  misery.  For,"  he  added,  "envy  brought 
death  mto  the  world,  and  envy  is  bUnd.  When 
spurred  by  chagrin,  it  pays  no  heed  to  the 
suffering  it  brings  upon  itself  provided  it  inflict 
injury  upon  another.  I  trust,  however,  that  he 
will  be  more  successful  in  evading  all  the  pit- 
falls of  Fortune,  for  God  is  with  him."  And 
here  he  left  me. 

I,  however,  who  was  thirsty  for  further 
information,  seized  him  by  the  hand  and  said, 
"  Whither  art  thou  hastening  ?"  "  Night  speeds 
on,"  said  he,  "and  I  must  off."  And  I:  "TeU 
me  this  at  least:  what  toil  has  raised  this  man 
to  such  high  station,  what  devotion,  what 
chance  ?"  And  he,  quoting  those  most  charm- 
ing lines  of  Vergil,s  very  appropriately  replied: 
"He  is  one  of  the  few 

whom  Heaven  has  marked  for  love, 
Or  glowing  worth  has  throned  above." 

Having  said  this  he  disappeared,  just  as  the 
sky  became  tinged  with  the  rosy  dawn.  And  I, 
I  either  re-collected  my  scattered  thoughts,  or 
else  awoke.  Farewell,  thou  remarkable  de- 
fender of  Liberty! 

Postscript. — I  can  testify  in  behalf  of  thy 
envoy  Messer  Giovanni,''  and  with  me  the  Curia 


88       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

and  truth  itself  can  testify,  that  he  has  com- 
ported himseK  with  such  integrity  in  thy 
interests  and  in  those  of  the  Repubhc  as  to 
merit  the  praise,  esteem,  and  (in  my  opinion) 
even  the  gratitude  of  his  chief.  I  am  sure  that 
thou  wouldst  have  known  this  even  had  I  made 
no  reference  to  it;  but  I  did  not  think  it  should 
be  passed  over  in  silence. 


NOTES 

1.  At  first,  Cola's  prosecution  of  the  barons  of  course 
pleased  the  Pope,  as  we  have  already  pointed  out  {Var., 
XXXVIII,  n.  5).  But,  as  the  news  of  Rienzo's 
further  doings  reached  the  western  Babylon,  greater 
and  greater  must  have  become  the  resentment  and  the 
anger  of  the  Colonna,  who  were  the  most  prominent  of 
the  barons  in  Rome,  and  the  leaders  of  the  opposition 
to  the  Tribune.  Not  to  mention  the  "many"  other 
high  dignitaries  and  prelates  of  the  Avignonese  court, 
the  difficulties  of  Petrarca's  position  with  reference  to 
the  Colonna  (to  whom,  as  he  himself  acknowledges, 
Fam.,  VII,  13,  he  owed  everything)  were  surely  at  this 
period  of  no  enviable  a  nature. 

2.  Terence,  Andria,  I,  i,  41  {ah  in.,  vs.  68). 

3.  This  statement  clearly  proves  that  when  Petrarca 
said,  "I  shall  not  cease  to  write  to  thee  daily,"  he  was 
not  to  be  taken  too  literally.  See  the  opening  sentence 
of  Var.,  XXXVIII,  and  the  note  thereto. 

4.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  suppose  that  Petrarca 
here  meant  to  warn  Cola  of  the  growing  enmity  of  the 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         89 

papal  court  (Brizzolara,  Studi storici,  VIII,  p.  435,  n.  i). 
It  is  quite  evident  that  this  entire  letter  is  in  the  nature 
of  a  warning  and  advice,  the  result,  indeed,  of  Petrarca's 
"solicitude  and  suspense  concerning  the  issue"  of 
Cola's  fortunes. 

5.  Vergil,  Aeneid,  vi.  129-30,  trans,  by  Conington 
(Longmans,  1900),  p.  178. 

6.  This  is  a  postscript  which,  like  so  many  of  its 
kind,  either  carries  more  information  or  causes  greater 
difficulty  than  the  letter  itself.  The  question  naturally 
arises.  Who  was  this  Messer  Giovanni  ? 

De  Sade  (II,  p.  354,  n.  a)  and  Fracassetti  (note  to 
Var.,  XL)  identify  Messer  Giovanni  with  the  messenger 
mentioned  in  the  Vita  di  Cola,  I,  10.  The  Vita  runs  as 
follows  (col.  757): 

"Then  the  Tribune  held  a  general  council,  and 
wrote  most  excellent  letters  to  the  various  cities. 
.  .  .  ."  (col.  759):  "In  these  letters  he  set  forth  his 
name  in  the  magniloquent  title  exhibited  by  the  follow- 
ing formula:  'Nicholas,  the  severe  and  clement. 
Tribune  of  liberty,  of  peace,  and  of  justice,  and  illus- 
trious deliverer  of  the  Holy  Roman  Republic ' 

The  couriers  who  bore  his  letters  carried  in  their  hands 
wooden  wands  plated  with  silver.  No  arms  did  they 
bear.  His  couriers  increased  to  such  an  extent  that 
they  became  many  in  number,  for  they  were  welcomed 
courteously,  and  great  honor  was  paid  to  them  by 
every  man.  They  were  handsomely  rewarded.  One 
of  his  couriers,  a  Florentine,  was  sent  to  Avignon,  to 
the  Pope  and  to  Messer  Janni  (Giovanni)  de  la  Colonna, 
cardinal.  He  brought  back  a  casket  of  wood  inlaid 
with  very  fine  silver  which  represented  the  arms  of  the 
Roman  people,  of  the  Pope,  and  of  the  Tribune.  Its 
value  was  thirty  florins.     Upon  his  return  the  courier 


90       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

said:  'This  wand  have  I  publicly  carried  through 
forests  and  over  highways.  Thousands  of  persons 
have  knelt  before  it,  and  have  kissed  it  with  tears, 
because  of  their  joy  that  the  highways  had  been 
rendered  safe  and  free  from  robbers.' " 

The  mention  of  the  couriers  in  this  chapter  of  the 
Vita  occurs  in  connection  with  the  statement  that  the 
Tribune  had  held  a  general  council  and  had  written 
most  excellent  letters  to  the  various  cities.  It  is  natural 
to  assimie  that  the  courier  mentioned  in  said  chapter 
was  the  bearer  of  one  of  these  most  excellent  letters, 
and  that  therefore  he  was  the  first  messenger  dispatched 
to  the  Pope  by  Cola  after  his  elevation  to  the  tribune- 
ship  (cf.  Filippini,  Studi  siorici,  X,  p.  268,  n.  2). 

The  date  of  Cola's  letter  to  the  city  of  Viterbo  (May 
24;  cf.  Gabrielli,  Epistolario,  No.  II)  seems  somewhat 
too  early  for  the  description  given  in  chap.  10  of  the 
Vita.  But  such  description  seems  to  point  to  the 
circular  letter  addressed  by  the  Tribune  to  the  cities  of 
Perugia,  Florence,  and  Lucca,  all  of  which  bear  the 
date  June  7  (Gabrielli,  ibid.,  Nos.  Ill,  IV,  V;  cf. 
Torraca,  Discussioni,  p.  52).  The  contents  of  these 
letters  must  have  become  known  at  Avignon  in  the 
latter  part  of  June,  when  the  Pope  must  have  received 
from  Cola  also  a  direct  notification;  for  we  find 
Clement  VI  recognizing  both  Cola  and  Raymond  as 
his  Rectors  at  Rome  in  a  letter  of  June  27,  1347 
(Theiner,  II,  No.  174,  p.  178). 

But  with  this  dating  of  the  events  and  of  the  messen- 
ger mentioned  in  Vita  I,  10  (which  we  judge  to  be  the 
correct  one),  insufficient  time  would  be  given  either  for 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         91 

the  natural  development  of  the  enmity  described  by 
Petrarca  in  the  opening  sentences  of  Var.,  XL,  or  for 
Petrarca's  repeated  defense  of  Cola's  tribimeship  and 
of  the  sincerity  of  Cola's  aim.  For,  up  to  such  date 
(the  latter  part  of  June),  the  Curia  could  not  have 
become  incensed  at  Cola.  The  latter's  backslidings 
were  as  yet  a  thing  of  the  future.  Our  first  conclusion, 
therefore,  is  that  both  De  Sade  and  Fracassetti  are  in 
error.  The  messenger  of  Vita  I,  10,  must  be  identified 
with  the  bearer  of  Cola's  first  message  to  the  Pope  in 
June;  hence,  he  cannot  be  identified  with  the  Messer 
Giovanni  of  Petrarca's  letter,  which  must  be  dated  in 
the  second  half  of  August. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  view  of  Filippini.  He 
points  out  (Studi  storici,  X,  p.  268,  and  n.  2)  that  Cola 
sent  an  envoy  to  Pope  Clement  VI  by  letter  of  August 
5,  1347.  This  letter  is  No.  XVI  of  the  Epistolario, 
and  it  consists  of  two  parts.  The  first  part  is  dated 
July  27,  and  contains  the  statement  (ibid., -p.  44, 1.  157) : 
ambassiator  ad  pedes  vestre  Clementie  trasmittetur.  In 
other  words,  by  this  first  half  of  the  letter,  it  is  clearly 
promised  that  an  ambassador  will  be  sent.  The 
second  part  of  the  letter  is  dated  August  5,  and  contains 
the  statement  {ibid.,  p.  45, 1.  189)  that  said  ambassador 
dirigitur,  is  being  sent.  Filippini  gives  the  former 
reference  instead  of  the  latter.  With  this  correction 
we  shall  proceed. 

Filippini  continues  (ibid.,  and  Studi  storici,  XI,  p. 
13,  n.  2)  that  the  envoy  thus  sent  on  his  way  on  August 
5,  or  thereabouts,  is  mentioned  as  being  on  the  way 
in  Cola's  letter  to  Rinaldo  Orsini,  dated  September  17, 


92        F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

1347  (Gabrielli,  op.  cit.,  No.  XXIII).  Filippini  refers 
the  reader  to  Epistolario,  p.  66,  1.  130;  but  he  should 
have  given  11.  131-32.  Even  so,  we  there  find  Cola's 
statement  that  he  is  not  writing  to  the  Pope  nor  to  the 
other  cardinals,  because  he  believes  that  a  worthy- 
envoy  representing  both  himself  and  the  Roman 
people  is  about  to  be  dispatched  to  the  Curia:  quia  ad 
Curiam  credimus  quod  ambassiata  Rotnani  populi  et 
nostra  honorabilis  dirigetur.  The  form  here  employed 
(dirigetur)  is  in  the  future  tense,  and  therefore  the 
sentence  must  mean  that  Cola  intended  to  dispatch  still 
another  envoy,  one  quite  distinct  from  the  envoy  sent 
on  or  about  August  5.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  we  have 
not  been  able  to  discover  in  the  correspondence  of  Cola 
any  further  reference  to  the  envoy  of  August  5,  unless 
such  reference  is  to  be  inferred  from  Cola's  remark  in 
the  same  letter  to  Rinaldo  Orsini  to  the  effect  that  he 
was  being  undeservedly  accused  in  Avignon  {ibid.,  p. 
66, 1.  135). 

Filippini  concludes  that  the  envoy  sent  on  August  5 
is  the  Giovanni  of  Petrarca's  postscript.  There  is  a 
lacuna  in  his  argument.  His  conclusion  is  correct  in 
our  opinion,  though  the  premises  leading  up  to  it  are 
incorrect.  In  other  words,  he  has  jumped  to  a  con- 
clusion, and  has  not  given  the  proofs  thereof.  The 
fault  lies  in  the  following  misstatements: 

a)  Epistolario,  p.  66,  11.  131-32,  does  not  say  that 
any  envoy  is  on  the  way;  the  form  there  found  is  the 
future  dirigetur,  and  not  the  present  dirigitur. 

b)  Even  granting  that  the  reading  of  1.  132  is,  or 
should  be,  the  present  dirigitur,  it  is  scarcely  conceivable 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         93 

that  a  special  envoy  from  Rome  to  Avignon,  bearing 
a  message  direct  to  Clement  VI,  should  have  been 
traveling  from  August  5  to  September  17,  a  period  of 
44  days,  and  still  not  have  reached  his  destination. 

We  think,  however,  that  we  can  prove  the  identity 
of  Messer  Giovanni  with  the  messenger  dispatched  by 
Cola  on  or  about  August  5. 

Any  envoy  sent  on  such  date  would  accompany,  or 
would  follow,  reports  of  Cola's  doings  in  the  latter  part 
of  July  and  in  the  beginning  of  August.  We  have 
proof  positive  that  the  Pope  at  Avignon  was  kept 
accurately  informed  by  Raymond,  Bishop  of  Orvieto 
and  his  vicar  at  Rome.  On  August  i,  Raymond 
dispatched  a  letter  to  his  lord  and  master  Clement  VI 
(Papencordt,  Document  No.  8).  On  August  2, 
Cochetus  de  Chotitis  sent  a  similar  letter  to  his  patron 
in  Avignon,  Rinaldo  Orsini,  Archdeacon  of  Liittich 
and  a  papal  notary.  This  letter  was  written  in  greater 
detail  than  that  of  Raymond;  in  fact,  it  was  quite  a 
catalogue  of  events,  beginning  with  the  attack  of  Cola's 
army  on  Vetralla,  then  going  over  the  same  ground  as 
the  letter  of  the  Bishop,  and  finally  including  the  events 
of  August  2  as  well  (Papencordt,  Document  No.  9). 

Both  these  letters,  being  dispatched  respectively  4 
and  3  days  before  Cola's  letter  of  the  5th,  must  have 
reached  their  destination  a  like  number  of  days  before 
the  letter  of  Cola.  Raymond's  letter  was  direct  to 
Clement  VI;  and  we  are  safe  in  assuming  that  Rinaldo 
Orsini  duly  notified  the  Pope  of  the  contents  of  the 
letter  from  Cochetus  de  Chotitis.  Hence,  at  the 
arrival  of  Cola's  messenger,  the  Pope  must  already  have 


94       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

known  the  following  astonishing  proceedings:  the  edict 
of  the  Tribune  decreeing  the  existence  of  the  Italian 
Nation  and  annulling  all  genuine  and  spurious  privi- 
leges assumed  by  the  Popes;  the  famous  festival,  in  the 
course  of  which  Cola  assumed  the  dignity  of  knight- 
hood, and  bathed  in  the  sacred  baptismal  basin  of 
Emperor  Constantine;  the  proclamation  of  Rome  as 
the  capital  of  the  world;  the  summons  sent  to  Emperor 
Lewis  of  Bavaria  and  to  King  Charles  of  Bohemia; 
and,  finally,  the  distribution  of  the  standards  to  the 
Italian  cities  during  the  memorable  festival  of  the  Unity 
of  Italy.  (Read  the  letter  of  Clement  VI  to  Bertrand, 
Cardinal-legate  for  the  kingdom  of  Sicily,  dated 
August  21,  1347;  Theiner,  II,  No.  175,  pp.  179-80, 
beginning  with  Post  hoc  autem;  cf.  Raynaldus,  XXV, 
443-44.) 

Such  news  as  this  (and  in  the  middle  of  the  14th 
century)  might  truly  have  been  deemed  by  the  papal 
court  as  news  from  another  world,  or  from  the  anti- 
podes. No  envoy,  either  bearing  such  news  or  reach- 
ing Avignon  together  with  such  news,  could  have 
escaped  the  resentment  of  the  self-exiled  Vicars  of  the 
Lord.  Of  this  resentment,  indeed,  and  of  the  chilly 
atmosphere  then  reigning  in  the  palace  of  the  Pope, 
we  see  a  clear  indication  in  the  words  of  Petrarca, 
when  he  feels  obliged  to  commend  Messer  Giovanni  for 
the  integrity  and  the  ability  with  which  he  comported 
himself  under  such  difficult  circumstances. 

We  have  found  what  may  be  considered  a  check 
proof  of  this  identification  of  Messer  Giovanni  in  chap. 
xxi  of  the  anonymous  Vita  di  Cola.    To  begin  somewhat 


TRIBUNE  AND  CURIA  ESTRANGED         95 

farther  back,  chap,  xvi  gives  an  account  of  the  sub- 
mission of  the  Prefect  Giovanni  di  Vico;  chaps,  xvii, 
xviii,  and  xix  constitute  an  excursus  by  the  author  on 
the  subject  of  dreams;  chap,  xx  gives  an  account  of 
what  we  shall  name  Cola's  nepotism.  Then  follows 
chap,  xxi,  which  in  reality  resumes  the  thread  of  the 
political  history  where  it  had  been  broken  ofif  at  chap, 
xvi.  In  chap,  xxi,  the  Vita  tells  how  Cola  finally 
dismissed  his  colleague  Raymond  and  how  he  sent  an 
embassy  to  the  Pope.  We  cite  from  the  Vita,  cols. 
797  and  799. 

"  At  a  time  of  such  great  prosperity  Cola,  wishing  to 
be  the  sole  ruler,  dismissed  the  Vicar  of  the  Pope,  his 
colleague,  who  was  a  foreigner  bom  beyond  the  Alps 
[uno  tramontano],  a  man  deeply  learned  in  the  Decretals, 
and  Bishop  of  Viterbo  [sic].  This  man  he  dismissed  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  he  received  many  letters  and  many 
embassies  from  prominent  ecclesiastics  in  Avignon. 
Then  Cola  sent  an  ambassador  to  the  Pope,  acquaint- 
ing him  with  these  conditions.  This  ambassador,  upon 
his  return,  said  that  the  Pope  and  all  the  Cardinals 
entertained  the  gravest  doubts." 

From  other  sources  we  know  that  the  Roman  army 
marched  out  against  Giovanni  di  Vico  in  the  second 
half  of  June;  that  negotiations  for  peace  were  on  foot 
on  July  16;  that  the  Roman  army  re-entered  the  city 
on  July  22  (Torraca,  Discussioni,  p.  46,  and  the  refer- 
ences there  given).  On  July  27  Cola  began  to  write  to 
the  Pope  a  report  giving  the  account  of  Vico's  submis- 
sion (Epistolario,  No.  XVI).  The  sending  of  this 
letter  was  postponed  because  of  the  lack  of  messengers 
{ibid.,  p.  44,  11.  161-62).    On  July  28  Cola  finds  a  few 


96       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

spare  moments  to  write  his  long-delayed  answer  to 
Petrarca's  Hortatoria  (ibid.,  No.  XV).  On  August  5 
Cola  takes  up  again  his  letter  to  the  Pope  begun  on 
July  27,  grasping  the  opportunity  of  adding  the  news 
of  the  further  developments  of  August  i  and  2.  (It 
will  be  remembered  that  the  Pope  was  to  become 
acquainted  with  these  facts  even  before  the  receipt  of 
Cola's  letter.  See  above.)  We  cannot  help  identify- 
ing the  messenger  thus  dispatched  with  the  one  in  chap, 
xxi  of  the  Vita.  In  short,  we  claim  that  the  messenger 
bearing  Cola's  letter  of  August  5,  the  messenger  of 
Vita  I,  21,  and  the  Messer  Giovanni  of  Var.,  XL  are 
one  and  the  same  person. 

Cola's  doings  were  becoming  of  an  alarming  and 
unprecedented  nature.  The  relations  between  Rome 
and  Avignon  were  becoming  more  and  more  strained, 
though  they  had  not  reached  the  breaking  point. 
The  household  of  the  Pope,  the  Cardinals,  and  other 
high  dignitaries  of  the  church  had  by  this  time,  there- 
fore, had  suflGicient  cause  for  their  stubborn  insolence, 
and  for  their  doubts  as  to  the  justice  of  the  tribunate, 
and  as  to  the  sincerity  of  the  aims  of  their  whimsical 
Rector  in  Rome.  The  doubts  of  the  Curia  described 
by  Petrarca  seem  to  us  to  correspond  precisely  to  the 
gravest  doubts  entertained  by  the  Pope  and  by  all  his 
Cardinals,  as  described  by  the  anonymous  author  of  the 
Vita  in  chap.  xxi.  Finally,  this  identification  of  Messer 
Giovanni  would  date  Var.,  XL  toward  August  21,  a 
date  which,  with  one  exception  (Filippini,  Sttidi  storici, 
XI,  14-15),  is  satisfactory  to  all  those  who  have  given 
due  consideration  to  this  subject. 


CHAPTER  VI 

The  Pope  at  Avignon  was  in  constant  com- 
munication with  his  Vicar  in  Rome,  Raymond, 
Bishop  of  Orvieto.  On  August  i,  Bishop 
Raymond  sent  a  letter  to  Clement  VI,  in  which 
he  reported  Cola's  assumption  of  the  knightly 
dignity,  the  citation  of  the  Emperor  and  the 
princes  of  the  Empire,  and  his  own  protest 
against  Cola's  fantastic  proceedings.  On  the 
following  day  (August  2)  Cochetus  de  Chotitis 
dispatched  similar  news  to  his  patron  in 
Avignon,  Rinaldo  Orsini,  papal  notary.  This 
letter  contained  information  also  of  the  festival 
of  United  Italy  celebrated  on  August  2,  1347. 
It  was  followed  by  the  official  report  sent  by 
Cola  on  August  5,  1347. 

From  the  ecclesiastical  standpoint,  the  Rec- 
tor's deeds  were  now  becoming  of  an  alarming 
nature.  The  Pope,  the  Cardinals,  and  others 
in  high  office  had  now  good  ground  for  their 
stubborn  insolence.  Petrarca's  position  among 
the  Avignonese  prelates  was  therefore  becom- 
ing daily  more  intolerable.  The  increasing 
suspicions  of  the  Colonna,  of  the  Orsini,  and 
of  the  other  famihes  of  the  Roman  nobihty 

97 


98       F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

represented  in  the  household  of  the  Pope; 
the  exaggerated  fears  of  the  clergy  m  general  for 
the  mamtenance  of  their  patrimony  and  their 
privileges  in  Italy;  the  strain  of  having  to 
defend  the  Tribune  from  the  accusations 
showered  upon  him  from  every  side;  and  the 
feeling  that  his  pleasant  relations  with  all  those 
by  whom  he  was  surrounded  were  being  slowly 
and  steadily  undermined — aU  this  must  have 
filled  with  sadness  the  heart  of  Petrarca. 

To  give  up  Cola  was  impossible.  He  loved 
his  friends  deeply  and  sincerely,  but  even 
more  deeply  did  he  love  Rome,  and  Italy,  and 
the  cherished  dream  of  years.  The  relations 
between  Cola  and  the  Curia  were  strained; 
still,  open  hostihties  had  not  yet  been  declared. 
The  enmity  thus  far  developed  existed  between 
individuals  only;  the  church  as  an  institution 
had  not  yet  broken  with  Cola.  Under  the 
circumstances  Petrarca,  wearied  by  his  unceas- 
ing strife  in  the  "HeU  of  the  Living,"  betook 
himself,  nay  fled  with  eagerness,  to  the  quiet, 
peaceful  sohtude  of  the  Enclosed  Valley.  The 
surroundings  gave  him  relief  from  the  distract- 
ing whirl  of  the  city,  but  could  not  banish 
thoughts  of  Rome.  Consequently,  he  com- 
posed an  eclogue  on  the  subject  uppermost  in 


COLA'S  ACTIONS  ALARMING  99 

his  mind,  and  sent  it  to  Cola  di  Rienzo,  accom- 
panying it  with  a  letter  of  explanation. 
Fortunately  both  eclogue  and  letter  are  extant. 


TO  COLA  DI  RIENZO,  TRIBUNE  OF  THE 
ROMAN  PEOPLE 

{Var.,  XLII) 

I  have  long,  and  with  difficulty,  been  sailing 
the  stormy  seas  of  this  Curia  which  caUs  itself 
Roman.  I  have  grown  rather  old  in  the  service, 
but  am  still  an  awkward  and  inexperienced 
sailor.  Consequently  I  recently  fled  from  the 
troubled  waters  of  Avignon,  and  sought  the 
haven  which,  as  ever,  offers  me  the  quiet  of 
soHtude — that  Enclosed  Valley  which  receives 
its  name  from  its  very  nature.  This  retreat  is 
fifteen  miles  distant  from  that  most  boisterous 
of  cities  and  from  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhone. 
Though  the  intervening  distance  is  so  short, 
still  the  two  places  are  so  utterly  different  that, 
whenever  I  leave  here  for  that  city,  I  seem  to 
have  encircled  the  globe  from  the  farthest  west 
to  the  extreme  east.  The  two  places  have 
nothing  in  common  except  the  sky:  the  men 
have  a  different  nature,  the  waters  are  of  a 


lOO     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

different  quality,  the  land  brings  forth  a  differ- 
ent vegetation/ 

Here  I  have  the  Fountain  of  the  Sorgue,  a 
stream  which  must  be  numbered  among  the 
fairest  and  coolest,  remarkable  for  its  crystal 
waters  and  its  emerald  channel.  No  other 
stream  is  like  it;  none  other  is  so  noted  for  its 
varying  moods,  now  raging  like  a  torrent,  now 
quiet  as  a  pool,  I  am  astonished,  therefore, 
that  Plinius  Secundus  should  have  placed  this 
fount  among  the  wonders  of  the  province  of 
Narbonne;  for  as  a  matter  of  fact  it  is  situated 
in  the  province  of  Aries.  ^  This  is  the  country- 
seat  where,  beyond  the  confines  of  Italy,  I  am 
detained  by  the  inexorable  claims  of  necessity. 
And  yet  the  spot  is  most  suitable  for  my  studies. 
The  hills  cast  a  grateful  shadow  in  the  morning 
and  in  the  evening  hours;  and  at  noon  many  a 
nook  and  comer  of  the  vale  gleams  in  the 
sunlight.  Round  about,  the  woods  lie  still  and 
tranquil,  woods  in  which  the  tracks  of  wild 
animals  are  far  more  numerous  than  those  of 
men.  Everywhere  a  deep  and  unbroken  still- 
ness, except  for  the  babbling  of  running  waters, 
or  the  lowing  of  the  oxen  browsing  lazily  along 
the  banks,  or  the  singing  of  birds.  I  should 
speak  of  this  more  at  length,  were  it  not  that  the 


COLA'S  ACTIONS  ALARMING  loi 

rare  beauties  of  this  secluded  dale  have  already 
become  familiar  far  and  wide  through  my  verses.^ 

Hither  then,  as  I  was  saying,  I  fled  with  great 
longing,  both  to  give  my  mind  and  my  ears  rest 
from  the  distracting  whirl  of  the  city,  and  also 
to  put  the  finishing  touches  to  some  work  I  had 
in  hand,  the  thought  of  which,  in  its  imfinished 
condition,  weighed  heavily  upon  me.  The  very 
aspect  of  the  forest  urged  me  to  compose  a  poem 
dealing  with  the  wild  woodlands.  To  that 
pastoral  poem,  therefore,  which  I  had  sung 
during  the  preceding  summer  in  that  same 
valley,  I  now  added  a  chapter.''  Or  rather, 
inasmuch  as  in  matters  of  poetry  we  should 
ever  employ  poetical  terms,  I  should  say  that 
I  now  added  an  eclogue.  The  laws  of  this 
species  of  poetry  forbade  me  to  choose  for  a 
background  any  other  than  a  sylvan  scene. 
Hence  I  wrote  a  pastoral  in  which  the  inter- 
locutors are  two  shepherds,  two  brothers,  and 
forwarded  this  poem  to  thee,  who  art  so 
devoted  a  scholar,  intending  that  it  should 
serve  as  a  reHef  from  thy  numerous  cares. 

The  nature  of  these  compositions  is  such 
that,  unless  the  author  himself  provide  the  key, 
their  meaning  cannot,  perhaps,  be  divined.^  In 
fact,  they  are  likely  to  remain  quite  unintelli- 


102      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

gible.  I  shall  not  oblige  thee,  who  art  straining 
every  nerve  in  solving  most  serious  questions  of 
state,  to  misspend  any  energy  over  the  words  of 
even  one  of  these  alleged  shepherds.  And  that 
thy  divine  intellect  may  not  be  engaged  even 
for  one  instant  in  unravehng  these  trifles  of 
mine,  I  shall  briefly  disclose  to  thee  the  sub- 
stance of  what  I  have  written. 

The  two  shepherds  represent  two  classes  of 
citizens  Hving  in  the  same  city,  but  enter- 
taining widely  divergent  sentiments  concerning 
that  same  Repubhc.  One  of  them  is  named 
Martins,  that  is  to  say,  warlike  and  restless,  or 
perhaps  he  is  named  after  Mars,  whom  tra- 
dition makes  the  father  of  him  who  founded  our 
race.  This  Martins  is  affectionate  toward  his 
mother  and  has  compassion  for  her.  His  mother, 
indeed,  is  Rome.  The  second  shepherd  is  his 
brother  Apicius,  a  name  once  borne  by  him  who 
was  master-connoisseur  of  the  art  of  cooking. 
Apicius  (as  thou  seest)  must  therefore  typify 
that  class  of  men  totaUy  given  over  to  idleness 
and  to  the  pursuit  of  pleasure.  The  scene 
represents  the  two  shepherds  in  heated  con- 
versation on  the  love  due  to  their  aged  mother, 
and  especially  on  the  question  of  restoring  her 
fincient  homestead  (which,  of  cQurse,  is  the 


COLA'S  ACTIONS  ALARMING  103 

Capitolium),  and  the  bridge  by  which  she  was 
wont  to  visit  her  farms  (which,  again,  is  the 
Mulvian).  The  bridge  spans  a  stream  descend- 
ing from  the  lofty  summits  of  the  Apennines, 
the  Tiber.  This  river,  whose  course  is  there 
outlined,^  leads  to  the  ancient  orchards,  and  to 
the  abodes  of  Saturn,  in  other  words,  to  the 
ancient  city  of  Orte,  and  to  Sutri.  It  leads  also 
to  the  shaded  valleys  of  Tempe,  by  which  is 
meant  Umbria,  in  which  are  Narni  and  Todi 
and  many  other  cities;  and,  farther  south,  it 
enters  Etruria,  whose  people  (as  thou  well 
knowest)  are  descended  from  the  Lydian  race.'' 
The  shepherd  who  is  mentioned  in  the  follow- 
ing passage — he  who  caught  the  thieves  on  the 
bridge  and  slew  them — is  Marcus  TuUius 
Cicero,  who  (as  thou  knowest)  seized  the 
Catilinarian  conspirators  on  the  Mulvian 
Bridge.^  Rightly  is  he  styled  shepherd,  because 
he  was  Consul;  rightly  is  he  styled  acute  and 
keen,  because  of  his  supremacy  in  the  field  of 
eloquence.  The  woods  for  which  the  ruined 
bridge  is  a  menace,  and  the  diminished  flock 
dweUing  therein  alike  symbolize  the  Roman 
people.  The  women  and  the  children,  for 
whom  Apicius  has  abandoned  his  mother  and 
whom  alone  he  cherishes,  are  the  lands  and  their 


I04     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

feudal  dwellers.  The  caverns  are  the  fortified 
palaces  of  these  lords,  relying  upon  which  they 
scoff  at  the  sufferings  of  the  citizens.  Apicius 
does  not  wish  the  CapitoUum  to  be  strength- 
ened; on  the  contrary,  he  proposes  that  it  be 
rent  in  two,  so  that  this  faction  and  that  may 
alternately  reign  supreme.  His  brother  strives 
to  bring  about  a  union,  and  in  referring  to  the 
riches  of  their  mother,  a  propos  of  restoring  the 
CapitoHum,  he  means  to  emphasize  the  fact 
that  Rome  is  still  a  power,  if  only  her  children 
be  of  one  mind.  For  (he  says)  Rome  nourishes 
both  sheep  and  bullocks,  representing,  natur- 
ally, the  needy  populace  and  the  wealthier 
portion  of  the  people.  Among  the  remnants  of 
their  former  fortune  Martins  mentions  also  a 
quantity  of  hidden  salt,  by  which  we  may 
simply  imderstand  the  revenues  from  the  tax 
on  salt,  which  I  hear  are  quite  considerable. 
However,  understand  by  it  rather  the  practical 
wisdom  of  the  Romans  which  has  too  long  lain 
dormant  from  dread  of  the  tyrants. 

While  the  brothers  are  thus  engaged  in 
debate,  a  winged  messenger  arrives.  This  is 
Rumor,  than  whom  (to  quote  Vergil)," 

never  plague  that  runs 
Its  way  more  swiftly  wins. 


COLA'S  ACTIONS  ALARMING  105 

This  courier  declares  their  cares  vain  and  their 
altercations  useless,  announcing  that  they  have 
both  been  disowned  by  their  mother,  and 
that,  with  the  mother's  consent,  their  younger 
brother  rebuilds  the  old  homestead  and  rules  the 
forests;  announcing,  furthermore,  that  their 
brother  thereby  imposes  silence  upon  them 
while  he  himself  sings  sweetly  to  the  flocks  and 
the  herds,  that  is  to  say,  while  he  himself 
promulgates  just  laws  and  abolishes  the  unjust. 
In  these  verses  I  have  veiled  (under  the  figures 
of  wfld  animals)  either  the  names,  or  the  natural 
dispositions,  or  the  armorial  bearings  of  certain 
of  the  tyrants.  Thus  far  thou  hast  proved 
thyself  to  be  the  youngest  of  the  three  brothers. 
Everything  else  is  clear.  Farewell,  0  illustrious 
man,  and  keep  me  in  thy  thoughts. 


NOTES 

I.  In  Fam.,  XIII,  8,  addressed  to  Francesco  Nelli, 
Prior  of  the  Church  of  the  Santi  Apostoli  at  Florence, 
and  dated  1352,  Petrarca  describes  his  simple  life  at 
Vaucluse,  closing  with  some  pertinent  remarks  upon 
the  contrast  between  his  retreat  by  the  Fountain  of 
the  Sorgue  and  the  not  distant  Avignon.  He  speaks  as 
follows  (Frac,  II,  p.  252,  and  3,  p.  262,  n.  i). 

"What  wouldst  thou  have?  I  could,  perhaps,  pass 
my  life  here  were  Italy  not  so  far  away,  or  Avignon  so 


io6     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

near.  Why,  forsooth,  should  I  endeavor  to  conceal 
the  two  weaknesses  of  my  soul?  My  love  for  the 
former  soothes  and  torments  me;  hatred  of  the  latter 
enrages  and  exasperates  me.  Its  most  horrid  stench 
brings  pestilence  upon  the  entire  world;  what  wonder, 
then,  if  it  has  vitiated  the  clear,  pure  atmosphere  of  a 
modest  country-seat  that  is  all  too  near  ?  This  stench 
will  drive  me  hence — I  have  a  sure  presentiment 
of  it. 

"Thou  art  now  informed  of  my  present  mode  of 
living.  There  is  nothing  that  I  desire,  except  thee  and 
the  few  friends  who  still  survive;  there  is  nothing  that 
I  dread,  except  a  return  to  the  cities.     Farewell." 

2.  Pliny,  N.H.,  XVIII,  22  (51),  190:  Est  in  Nar- 
bonensi  provincia  nobilis  fons  Orge  nomine. 

3.  Vaucluse  and  its  beauties  are  spoken  of  among 
others,  in  Epistolae  poeticae,  I,  4,  which  invites  Dino 
Roberti  di  Borgo  San  Sepolcro  to  visit  Vaucluse;  and 
in  I,  6,  which  extends  a  similar  invitation  to  his  very 
dear  friend  Philippe  de  Cabassole,  Bishop  of  Cavaillon. 
The  dates  which  have  been  assigned  to  these  two 
compositions  are  1339  and  1346  respectively,  hence 
they  are  both  earlier  than  the  present  letter  to  Cola. 

4.  The  Eclogues  were  begun  in  the  summer  of  1346 
(Gaspary,  Geschichte,  I,  431).  Since  the  eclogue 
which  Petrarca  now  added,  Pietas  pastoralis,  is  the 
fifth  "  chapter  "  in  the  series,  it  is  clear  from  this  passage 
that  at  least  Eclogues  i  to  4  inclusive  were  composed 
during  the  preceding  summer. 

5.  In  Fam.y  X,  4,  addressed  to  his  brother  Gerardo, 
and  dated  Padua,  December  2,  1348,  Petrarca  gives  a 
lengthy  exposition  of  the  meaning  of  Eclogue  i, 
entitled  Parthenias. 


COLA'S  ACTIONS  ALARMING  107 

6.  This  passage  has  confused  earlier  translators. 
The  phrase  which  has  caused  the  misunderstanding 
consists  of  the  two  words,  Iter  illud  (Frac,  III,  p.  411). 
Iter  has  regularly  been  taken  in  the  sense  of  road,  or 
highway  (Frac,  5,  p.  370;  Develay,  Lettres  a  Rienzi, 
I,  79;  II,  121,  and  note.  Develay  has  repeated  his 
version  in  the  translation  of  the  Eclogues,  I,  p.  90, 
note;  cf.  Adorni,  in  Rossetti,  Poesie  Minori,  I,  80-82). 

With  this  meaning  for  Iter  illud,  translators  have 
been  compelled  to  give  a  forced  and  untrue  rendering 
of  the  passage  in  Var.,  XLII  (Frac,  III,  p.  411,  Iter 
illud  ....  non  ignoras),  and  also  of  the  correspond- 
ing passage  in  Eclogue  5  (A vena,  II  Bucolicum  Carmen, 
p.  117,  vss.  88-92).  In  fact,  in  Eclogue  5  there  is  no 
mention  whatsoever  of  la  strada  of  Fracassetti  or  of 
la  route  of  Develay.  Eclogue  5  and  Var.,  XLII  were 
sent  off  to  Cola  at  the  same  time,  and  must  have  been 
composed  at  no  great  interval  one  from  the  other. 
Petrarca,  in  writing  the  latter,  could  not  so  far  have 
forgotten  the  substance  of  the  former  as  to  refer  to  a 
road  in  Eclogue  5  which  he  had  not  there  mentioned. 
The  only  meaning  that  can  correctly  be  given  to  Iter 
illud,  then,  is  "that  course,"  meaning  the  river  whose 
course  is  there  outlined.  This  rendering  is  borne  out 
by  the  fact  that  only  by  this  interpretation  do  the  cities 
and  the  districts  mentioned  by  Petrarca  remain  in 
their  proper  geographical  position,  being  named  in 
order  according  to  the  southward  flow  of  the  Tiber 
from  its  source  to  its  mouth,  and  not  according  to  the 
northward  direction  of  any  road  leading  out  from 
Rome.    Such  rendering,  furthermore,  gives  the  solution 


io8     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

of  the  uUerius  of  Var.,  XLII,  which  had  been  an 
insurmountable  obstacle  to  said  commentators. 

It  should  be  noticed,  in  passing,  that  Petrarca  here 
indulges  in  a  play  of  words,  if  he  does  not  actually 
dabble  in  philology.  He  connects  Hortanum  with 
hortus,  Sutriutn  with  Saturnus,  Umbria  with  umhrosus. 
In  commenting  upon  the  corresponding  passage  of 
Eclogue  5,  Piendibeni  says  (Avena,  op.  cit.,  p.  269): 
"to  the  ancient  orchards:  the  city  of  Orte,  which  is  an 
ancient  city;  the  shaded  valleys  of  Tempe:  the 
delightful  valley  of  Spoleto;  the  abodes  of  Saturn: 
that  is,  Sutrium,  so  called  from  Saturn.  Defeated  by 
his  son  Jupiter,  he  [i.e.,  Saturn]  hid  in  these  parts, 
whence  Latium,  so  called  from  his  hiding  [a  latendo]." 

7.  Pliny,  N.H.,  III,  5(8),  50:  Umbros  inde  exegere 
antiquitus  Pelasgi,  hos  Lydi,  a  quorum  rege  Tyrrheni, 
mox  a  sacrifico  ritu  lingua  Graecorum  Thusci  sunt 
cognominati. 

8.  Cicero,  Cat.,  iii.  2,  5-6;  and  iii.  3,  6. 

9.  Aeneid,  iv.  174,  trans,  by  Conington,  p.  108. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  SHEPHERDS'  AFFECTION^  (ECLOGUE  5) 

Martins.  Why  is  our  revered  mother  thus 
afflicted,  brother  ?  What  can  have  befallen  her 
to  cause  such  groans?  Why  is  she  so  fuU  of 
sadness,  and  why  does  she  ever  shed  fresh  tears, 
when  our  own  eyes  are  not  even  moistened  ? 

Apicitis.  The  fleeting  years  devour  every- 
thing. Time  conquers  all  things,  itself  uncon- 
querable. Our  mother's  fortune  has  vanished, 
and  her  comeHness;  and  vigorous  youth  turns 
the  shoulder  to  withered  old  age. 

Martins.  But  look  about,  and  behold  how 
many  are  the  aged  women  still  hale  and  hearty, 
in  spite  of  the  pressing  years.*  Different  the 
source  of  her  sorrow.  For  other  reasons  do 
these  sighs  spring  from  her  bleeding  heart. 
Oiu:  love  urges  us  to  discover  these  causes,  and 
when  discovered,  to  combat  her  destiny.  Our 
filial  duty  commands  us,  and  the  excellence  of 
our  mother  demands  it  in  return  for  the  labors 
of  childbirth,  and  for  her  constant  and  tender 
care  of  us. 

Apicins.  Nature  wiU  not  brook  interference. 
Though    all    the   powers    unite    against    her, 

109 


no     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

though  mankind  summon  every  art  and  struggle 
in  the  vain  contest,  Nature  will  proudly  rear 
her  unconquered  head  and  will  scorn  all  fetters. 

Martins.  But  this  very  Nature  of  which 
thou  speakest,  Apicius,  wills  it  that  our  parents 
be  well-nigh  equal  to  the  gods. 

Apicius.  Aye,  and  this  same  Nature  forbids 
us  to  turn  aside  the  course  of  life;  forbids  us  to 
derange  the  estabHshed  order  of  things.  Our 
mother  cannot  regain  the  vigor  of  her  youth. 
But  there  is  another  duty  which  claims  our 
attention.  Let  each  of  us  think  of  his  spouse, 
and  consider  how  best  to  aid  his  infant  children.^ 

Martins.  And  are  we  to  do  nothing  for  our 
mother?  As  for  myself,  my  concern  for  our 
widowed  mother  is  the  greater.  I  can  conceive 
no  dearer  duty.'' 

Apicins  {aside).  What  forbids  my  making  a 
pretense  at  affection  ?  Gentle  words  are  but  a 
light  burden.s  {To  Martins)  She  alone  has 
given  us  these  shoulders,  these  hands,  these 
arms.  Let  her  alone  then  reap  the  benefits  of 
her  gifts.  I  surely  shall  not  decHne  to  attend 
her  at  whatever  hour  she  call,  or  to  be  a  staff 
to  her  feeble  old  age. 

Martins.  The  gods  in  the  sky  serene  have 
given  thee  wisdom.    Now  fihal  affection  takes 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  11 1 

up  its  arms  and  asserts  its  sway.  Now  art  thou 
a  son.  Brother,  wishest  thou  that  we  reUeve 
our  mother's  need  ? 

Apicius.  Why  dost  thou  check  thy  words  ? 
Speak  out.  Every  delay  is  torture  to  one  who 
loves. 

Martins.  Mother  dwells  in  a  home  sur- 
rounded by  shady  groves  and  built  upon  a  hill.*^ 
For  many  years  her  sons  (who  until  recently 
evinced  a  noble  spirit)  adorned  their  home  with 
loyal  care.  The  fame  of  their  mother  was  great 
in  the  land;  throughout  the  woodland  pastures 
did  she  stir  abundant  envy.  Blessed  was  she 
in  her  children,  and  renowned  for  her  rustic 
treasures.  She  ruled  queen  of  the  forests, 
when  envious  death  snatched  her  children  from 
the  disconsolate  mother.  The  clay  perished, 
but  their  fame  hves  on.  We,  on  the  contrary, 
are  put  off  with  promises  in  our  youthful  years, 
and  Hve  a  Hfe  of  mockery.  The  seeds  of  fame 
are  stiU  among  us,  but  they  are  buried  deep  in 
darkness.  It  is  in  our  times  that  our  home  has 
suffered  change.  Our  fortunes,  which  had 
remained  unimpaired  through  the  lapse  of 
years,  sank  because  unable  to  resist  our  own 
mad  fury.  This  ruined  home  we  must  now 
rebuild  for  our  mother.    Nothing  could  give 


112      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

her  greater  pleasure,  except  she  were  to  behold 
her  children,  whom  the  fates  weigh  down,  spring 
again  from  the  shattered  graves,  and  to  see  the 
olden  times  return. 

Apicius.  Men  are  numbered  by  thousands; 
their  cares  by  miUions.  Each  man  considers 
himself  a  sage.  But  whence  these  dreams  of 
thine,  brother?  To  ward  off  poverty  is  in 
itself  a  heavy  task  in  this  world,  and  one  which 
holds  forth  no  hope  of  respite.  As  for  us,  our 
fortune  is  so  spiteful  that,  toil  as  we  may,  we 
can  barely  extract  a  Uvelihood  from  the  forest. 
I  shall  mention  facts  well  known  to  thee, 
brother.  In  the  present  condition  of  the 
country-side,  we  do  not  draw  a  comfortable 
existence  from  theft  and  plunder  combined;  as 
matters  stand,  we  cannot  drive  home  our  booty 
from  such  sheepfolds  as  are  well  provided.  And 
in  spite  of  all  this,  wouldst  thou  prepare  to  rear 
a  new  home  for  our  mother,  who  is  so  soon  to 
descend  into  the  grave  ? 

Martins.  Not  a  new  home,  no!  I  but  wish 
to  repair  the  shameful  ruins  of  our  former  home. 
Come,  dear  brother!  Give  me  thy  hand,  and 
manly  assume  thy  share  of  the  burden.  Let  thy 
filial  duty  remain  unconquered  and  let  it  over- 
come   aU    obstacles.    Let    us   both    dry    our 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  113 

mother's  tears,  and  let  us  at  the  same  time 
alleviate  her  sorrowing  heart,  lest  she  grieve 
that  she  has  begotten  such  sons. 

Apicius.  Vain  cares  distract  thy  mind. 
Vain  are  thy  hopes  for  a  progeny  such  as  once 
peopled  the  plains  far  and  wide — a  hardy  band 
not  content  with  its  own  walls  nor  with  its 
small  holdings.  We  are  now  reduced  to  a 
mere  handful.  The  wilderness  will  henceforth 
nourish  us  with  wild  berries.  Henceforth  our 
spacious  grotto  with  its  double  roof  will  shelter 
us  from  the  threatening  skies  and  ward  off  the 
winds  and  the  rains.  Our  mother  will  live 
with  us  alternately,  attending  festive  gatherings 
of  both  the  one  and  the  other  house,  and  will 
thus  enjoy  a  twofold  homage.'^ 

Martins.  True,  Apicius,  but  she  will  be 
despised  and  abused  by  our  haughty  consorts, 
and  will  have  to  bow  the  head  to  her  domineer- 
ing daughters-in-law.^  Nay,  abandon  thy 
scheme  and  hearken  to  a  better.  Let  us  both 
protect  the  home  of  our  mother,  and  worship 
with  due  reverence  the  threshold  which  her 
sacred  feet  have  touched.'  I  make  no  harsh 
demand.  It  is  sweet  for  youth  to  succor  an 
aged  mother.  I  shall  not  feel  shame  at  being 
seen   early  in   the   morning   standing  at   the 


114     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

entrance,  anxious  for  her  every  command." 
Why  shoiild  we  not  toil  over  our  own  flocks,  and 
reconstruct  the  wonted  abode  of  our  household 
gods?  Hence  shall  our  children's  children 
inherit  their  power.  Let  there  be  but  one 
house;  let  there  be  no  divided  authority  and 
no  division  of  honors  among  brothers.  Our 
neighbors  will  live  in  fear  of  us  if  we  stand 
united,  and  true  worth  will  win  greater  respect 
than  the  sword.  Let  us  gird  ourselves  for  the 
task  before  us.  Some  things  become  easier  to 
those  who  try.  Mother  herself  will  lend  her 
assistance  if  she  but  perceive  our  friendly  dis- 
position; for  she  doth  rear  a  flock  of  sheep  and 
a  herd  of  bullocks,"  the  foundation  of  our  entire 
wealth  and  substance. 

To  deceive  a  mother's  expectations  is  the  part 
of  children  only.  Long  years  ago,  mother 
buried  in  the  earth  remnants  of  our  former 
fortunes,  and  in  addition  a  large  quantity  of 
salt,"  which  she  had  secretly  and  lovingly  pre- 
pared for  her  sheep  who  were  so  fond  of  it,  and 
by  the  sprinkling  of  which  she  made  the 
herbage  more  savory  for  them.  Moreover,  an 
impetuous  stream,  descending  from  the  high 
mountain-range,  flows  down  to  our  ancient 
orchards,  to  the  shaded  valleys  of  Tempe,  to  the 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  115 

abodes  of  Saturn  and  to  all  the  lands  which  we 
once  possessed  beyond  its  northern  bank,  but 
which  our  cruel  Lydian  guest  now  holds.^^ 

With  its  raging  waters  this  stream  checks  the 
further  progress  of  our  feeble  mother  when  she 
desires  to  re-visit  her  pastures.  A  bridge  once 
spanned  it,  a  bridge  which  had  been  built  by 
the  hands  of  our  revered  ancestors  and  had 
stood  firm  until  this  day.  Upon  this  bridge  a 
keen  shepherd  once  seized  at  night  those 
stealthy  robbers  who  had  plotted  death  for  the 
flock  and  destruction  for  the  forest.  That 
shepherd  punished  the  robbers  with  death,  as 
they  deserved.  But  thy  right  hand  it  was, 
Apicius  (it  is  a  fact  thou  well  knowest),  that 
hurled  this  bridge  into  the  swollen  waters.  In 
thy  haste  to  do  me  harm,  thou  dost  inflict  an 
injury  upon  our  mother,  upon  thyself,  upon  our 
flocks,  and  upon  our  entire  forest  home.^''  But 
I  avoid  recriminations.  The  bridge  now  de- 
mands our  earnest  attention,  and,  though 
myself  innocent  of  all  blame,  I  shall  not  refuse 
to  shoulder  my  share  of  the  burden. 

Apicius.  It  was  thy  long-continued  haughti- 
ness, 0  brother,  that  drove  me  to  commit  the 
deed.  But  we  possess  a  small  skiff  in  which  he 
who  desires  to  cross  may  do  so  with  ease.    Only 


Ii6      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

a  small  parcel  of  land  remains  on  the  farther  side 
of  the  stream.'^  Fortune  has  circumscribed 
our  extensive  possessions,  and  has  marked  out 
for  us  the  same  boundaries  which  it  originally 
set  for  the  two  brothers,  whose  relations  were  as 
friendly  as  ours.  Scanty  were  the  lands  of  our 
earhest  ancestors;  scanty  are  those  of  their  last 
descendants.  Between  the  two  periods,  our 
fathers  extended  their  territory,  but  daring  wins 
merely  gladsome  results,  not  permanent  ones. 
Behold,  all  things  have  returned  to  their  primi- 
tive state.  Base  Fortune  amuses  herself  with 
her  incessant  whirl.  What  if  we  do  remain 
without  a  bridge?  Is  it  not  for  that  very 
reason  safer  on  the  bank  ?  And  as  for  the  rest, 
it  is  somewhat  too  late  to  erect  a  new  home 
when  our  mother's  feet  are  already  on  the  brink 
of  the  grave. 

Festinus.  Why  do  you  both  waste  the  fleet- 
ing hours  in  useless  wrangHng  ?  Your  younger 
brother — he  whom  you  are  wont  to  keep  under 
foot — is  now  lord  of  the  forests.  Already  has 
he  laid  the  foundations  of  new  palaces  on  the 
ancestral  estate.  To  him  has  your  mother 
intrusted  her  lands  and  her  flocks.  She  now 
rests  securely  on  the  breast  of  her  son.  All 
classes  swear  allegiance  to  him;  and  he,  though 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  117 

a  youth,  is  burdened  with  the  cares  of  an  aged 
statesman,  and  stands  alert  with  drawn  sword. 
Snares  have  been  spread  beneath  the  trees  of 
the  forest,  in  which  to  catch  the  feet  of  birds 
and  the  necks  of  thieves.^^  Strong  bolts  guard 
the  well-fed  and  tender  sheep  against  the 
thirsting  wolves.  The  ill-humored  Bear  growls 
no  longer;  the  blood-thirsty  Boar  has  ceased  to 
vent  his  rage,  the  Serpent  to  hiss.  The  swift 
Lions  do  not,  as  formerly,  drive  their  prey 
away,  nor  do  the  Eagles  fasten  their  hooked 
talons  upon  the  lamb.^^ 

High  upon  a  lofty  eminence  the  guardian 
shepherd  sits,  singing  sweetly  to  his  flock. 
The  pasture  lands  rest  quietly  in  the  lap  of 
security.  And  now  both  shores  hearken  to  his 
song.^*  The  far-off  Calabrian  hears  it,  and  the 
remote  waters  of  the  Ligurians,  and  he  who 
dwells  on  the  curving  shores  of  cleft  and  wave- 
breaking  Pelorus.  If  he  but  raise  his  voice,  he 
will  arouse  the  Moors  and  the  shepherds  of 
Ind,^'  the  snows  of  the  North  and  the  parching 
sands  of  the  South.  He  bids  you  to  hold  your 
tongues.  Go  home,  and  shear  the  helpless 
sheep.  Your  dear  mother  protests  that  you 
are  not  the  fruit  of  her  womb,  and  vows  that 
you  were  fraudulently  substituted  in  place  of 


ii8     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

her  true  children.  Thou,  O  Apicius,  wert 
loosed  against  us  by  the  neighboring  valley, 
where  the  wild  herds  and  the  flocks  of  Spoleto 
go  forth  to  reap  the  verdant  meadows  of  the 
Apennine  forest.  The  pasture  lands  and  the 
distant  region  of  the  Rhine  it  was  that  gave 
thee  birth,  O  Martins."" 

Martins.    Now  I  remember;    I  had  heard 
some  old  herdsmen  say  so. 


NOTES 

I.  Codex  33,  Plut.  52  of  the  Medicean-Laurentian 
Library  contains  a  commentary  on  the  Eclogues  which 
Rossetti  and  Hortis  have  ascribed  to  Petrarca's  friend, 
Donato  degli  Albanzani.  Avena,  however,  cannot 
agree  with  them,  and  argues  that  the  commentary  must, 
for  the  present,  be  given  as  that  of  an  anonymous 
author  (//  Bucolicum  Carmen,  pp.  84  flf.).  We  quote 
from  this  debated  commentary  (op.  cit.,  p.  207): 

"  The  argument  of  this  eclogue  is  as  follows.  When 
the  Roman  power  had  been  reduced  to  its  lowest  state 
and  had  been  divided  between  two  factions  (that  of  the 
Orsini  and  that  of  the  Colonna,  to  which  families  all 
the  other  noble  and  prominent  houses  and  the  entire 
people  gave  their  adherence),  among  other  causes  of 
strife  between  said  Colonna  and  Orsini,  the  following 
became  the  chief  cause. 

"The  Colonna  wished  that  the  Roman  Senate  and 
power  should  have  their  seat  on  the  Campidoglio,  as 
had  been  the  custom  of  old;  the  Orsini,  on  the  other 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  119 

hand,  stated  their  desire  that  that  same  Senate  have 
its  seat  at  their  home,  the  Castello  S.  Angelo;  or  else, 
that  it  should  there  be  stationed  when  the  rule  of  the 
city  lay  in  their  hands,  and,  in  turn,  at  the  home  of  the 
Colonna,  that  is  to  say  at  San  Marcello,  when  the  rule 
of  the  city  fell  to  these.  For  each  house  ruled  supreme 
in  alternate  months.  In  this  way  the  state  was 
divided:  the  Orsini  desired  to  drag  the  Senate  off  to  a 
strange  and  private  abode;  the  Colonna,  on  the 
contrary,  to  its  neutral  and  wonted  abode.  Therefore 
the  title  of  the  eclogue  is  'The  Shepherds'  Affection' 
{Pietas  pastor  alts),  because  the  shepherds  speak  of  a 
queen  as  if  of  their  mother,  widowed,  desolate,  and 
abandoned. 

The  speakers  are  Martins — that  is,  the  house  of  the 
Colonna,  which  has  risen  to  the  height  of  power  by 
force  of  arms  (for  this  has  ever  been  a  warlike  house), 
and  Apitius,  that  is,  the  house  of  the  Orsini.  For 
apitiosus  means  bald,  without  hair;  and  the  bear  itself 
is  an  animal  without  a  tail,  and  so  Apitius  represents 
the  house  of  the  Orsini.  Festinus  is  Rmnor,  in  other 
words  a  messenger,  so  called  because  he  travels  swiftly. 
These  two,  Martins  and  Apitius,  speak  of  Rome  herself 
as  if  of  their  mother;  for  Rome  had  begotten  them, 
hence  is  she  their  mother;  and  for  this  reason  the 
eclogue  is  entitled  'The  Shepherds'  Affection,'  because 
the  conversation  is  as  if  concerning  their  actual  mother. 
Therefore  Martins  thus  begins." 

In  endeavoring  to  explain  the  symbolism  of  the 
three  characters  of  this  eclogue,  the  ancient  commenta- 
tors reached  some  strange  conclusions. 

Martins  is,  as  a  rule,  correctly  interpreted,  being 
identified  by  Cod.  Vat.  lat.  1679,  and  by  N  with 
Stefano  Colonna  himself  (Avena,  op.  cit.,  pp.  76,  266, 
267).     Codex  N  gives  as  a  reason  for  Petrarca's  calling 


120     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Martius  warlike  the  fact  that  a  member  of  the  Colonna 
brought  about  the  death  of  Pope  Boniface  VIII  {op. 
cU.,  p.  266), 

Apicius  has  caused  greater  confusion.  The  author 
of  Arguments  D  explains  in  words  reminiscent  of 
Petrarca  himself,  saying  {op.  cit.,  p.  85):  Appitius 
domus  Ursina  ab  appitio  summo  in  arte  epulandi 
magistro.  Also  Cod.  Vat.  lat.  1679  i^-^-)  is  correct. 
Cr.  gives  Apicius  as  the  proper  name  of  one  of  the 
Orsini  {op.  cit.,  p.  266).  N  gives  a  new  variant,  ex- 
plaining in  a  wild  and  rambling  manner  that  Apitius 
is  derived  "from  a  (privative),  that  is  'without,'  and 
picios,  that  is  pietas:  hence,  without  affection  {sine 
pietate)  or  without  a  cap  {sine  apice),  that  is  to  say, 
without  the  cap  {sine  birrieto)  which  he  himself  was 
wont  to  wear,  and  hence  Apitius  stands  for  Messer 
Rinaldo  degli  Orsini"  {ibid.). 

Festinus,  finally,  is  explained  by  the  author  of 
Arguments  D  as  the  Roman  people,  so  called  for  its 
changeableness  and  fickleness  {op.  cit.,  p.  73),  which 
reason  is  repeated  by  Cr.  and  by  C.  B.,  the  former 
adding  the  saving  clause,  "or  it  may  be  understood  as 
Rumor"  {op.  cit.,  p.  266).  C.  B.,  lastly,  holds  out  the 
suggestion  that  Festinus  may  be  Petrarca  himself. 

Enough,  and  perhaps  more  than  enough,  has  been 
said  to  prove  how  far  away  from  the  truth  the  ancient 
commentators  strayed;  to  prove,  also,  that  (in  the 
words  of  Petrarca)  "the  nature  of  these  compositions 
is  such  that,  unless  the  author  himself  provide  the  key, 
their  meaning  cannot,  perhaps,  be  divined.  In  fact, 
they  are  likely  to  remain  quite  unintelligible." 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  121 

2.  Francesco  Piendibeni  da  Montepuldano  gives 
Padua  as  an  instance  of  a  city  that  is  even  older  than 
Rome  and  is  still  hale  and  hearty  (Avena,  p.  267). 

3.  Cod.  33,  Plut.  52,  Laur.  (Avena,  p.  208):  ''We 
must  think  of  our  cities,  and  castles,  and  farms,  and  of 
all  the  property  which  we  possess  in  our  own  right; 
and  let  him  (that  is,  each  one)  consider  how  best  and 
legally  to  aid  his  infant  children,  that  is,  the  peoples 
and  all  those  subject  to  us,  and  the  farmers  who  attend 
upon  us,  or  serve  us  and  obey  our  orders."  The 
indiscriminate  shifting  between  the  singular  and  the 
plural  is  a  faithful  reproduction  of  the  Renaissance 
original. 

4.  Piendibeni  (Avena,  p.  268):  "And  by  this  the 
author  means  to  show  that  the  Orsini  always  disre- 
garded the  welfare  of  the  state,  striving  instead  for 
their  own  private  advantage." 

5.  We  are  indebted  for  the  suggestion  of  making  this 
verse  (24)  an  aside  to  a  remark  in  Cod.  33,  Plut.  52 
Laur.,  (Avena,  p.  209):  et  ideo,  postquatn  intra  se  hoc 
dixerat,  ad  martium  dirigit  sermonem.  Compare  the 
rendering  of  Develay  {Lettres  a  Rienzi,  II,  113):  Qui 
Vemp^che  de  I' aimer?  De  douces  paroles  content  pen. 
Compare,  also,  his  translation  of  the  Eclogues,  I,  82- 
83,  where  the  above  rendering  has  been  repeated 
unchanged. 

6.  Cod.  33,  Plut.  52,  Laur.  (Avena,  p.  209):  "that 
is  upon  the  mountain  itself  [the  Campidoglio]  with  its 
many  palaces  constituting  a  veritable  forest  [more 
silvarum  conditis],  and  with  its  towers  and  very 
lofty  halls." 


122     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

7.  Compare  above,  n.  i;  also,  Avena,  pp.  211,  269, 
and  note. 

8.  These  represent  the  barons  and  the  princes  "who 
are  the  consorts  of  the  cities  adjoining  and  bordering 
upon  Rome,  the  Colonna,  the  Orsini,  the  Conti,  the 
Savelli,  and  the  others  who  rule  all  those  cities.  Hence, 
when  he  [i.e.,  Petrarca]  says  daughters-in-law,  he 
means  the  cities  betrothed  by  the  ancestors  of  these 
very  princes"  (Cod.  33,  Plut.  52  Laur.;  Avena,  p.  211). 

9.  Cod.  33,  Plut.  52  Laur.  (Avena,  loc.  cit.,)  would 
render:  "which  sacred  feet  have  touched,"  meaning 
those  of  the  ancient  Roman  heroes. 

10.  Piendibeni  (Avena,  p.  269):  "This  [i.e.,  the 
willingness  of  Martins  to  stand  at  the  entrance]  may  be 
imderstood  to  signify  that,  when  the  Senate  was  con- 
vened in  the  home  of  the  Orsini,  the  Colonna  did  not 
go  thither;  and  conversely." 

11.  Cod.  33,  Plut.  52  Laur.  (Avena,  p.  212)  explains 
the  sheep  as  ipsos  populates  homines  qui  labore  et  sudore 
vivunt;  the  bullocks,  as  cives  bonos  romanos.  Piendi- 
beni explains  the  latter  as  potentes  et  magnates  alios 
{op.  cit.,  p.  269). 

12.  Read  Gregorovius,  VI,  256. 

13.  The  reference  is  to  the  Prefect  of  the  city, 
Giovanni  di  Vico,  who  had  been  tyrant  of  Roman 
Tuscany,  that  is  to  say,  of  the  Patrimony  of  St.  Peter 
in  Tuscany  (cf.  Papencordt,  pp.  23-24). 

This  verse  is  spoken  before  the  arrival  of  Festinus; 
it  occurs,  therefore,  in  that  portion  of  the  eclogue  which 
describes  conditions  in  Rome  before  the  elevation  of 
Cola  on  May  20.    Hence  it  cannot  be  argued  from  this 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  123 

verse  that  the  eclogue  was  composed  before  the  news  of 
Vico's  submission  reached  Avignon,  that  is,  before 
August  21.  The  date  of  this  eclogue,  however,  can  be 
inferred  from  other  data.  In  the  last  note  to  Var.,  XL, 
we  endeavored  to  prove  that  said  letter  was  written 
upon  the  arrival  of  a  messenger  from  Rome  bringing 
news  of  Vico's  downfall.  The  consequent  doubts 
arising  in  the  papal  court  and  the  equivocal  position  in 
which  Petrarca  was  placed  were  the  causes,  we  think, 
of  his  leaving  the  troubled  waters  of  Avignon  and 
seeking  the  quiet  haven  of  the  Enclosed  Valley.  We 
are  of  the  opinion,  therefore,  that  both  Var.,  XLII,  and 
Eclogue  5  are  to  be  dated  only  a  few  days  later  than 
Var.,  XL,  that  is  to  say,  they  are  to  be  dated  some- 
where between  August  22  and  31,  1347. 

For  the  point  involved  in  the  word  Lydian,  see  Var., 
XLII,  n.  7.  With  the  statement  of  Pliny  there  given 
compare  the  similar  account  given  by  the  author  of 
Cod.  33,  Plut.  52  Laur.  (Avena,  p.  212),  and  the  myth 
reported  by  Piendibeni  (op.  cit.,  p.  269). 

14.  See  letter  Var.,  XLVIII,  n.  12.  Cod.  33,  Plut. 
52,  Laur.  (Avena,  p.  213):  "Recently,  however,  during 
the  time  of  these  Colonna  and  Orsini,  and  because  the 
said  Colonna  had  a  part  of  their  possessions  across  this 
bridge  [i.e.,  the  Ponte  Molle],  said  Orsini  destroyed 
said  bridge,  which  still  remains  thus  in  ruins."  This 
codex  dates  from  the  end  of  the  fourteenth,  or  the 
beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  (Avena,  p.  26). 
The  clew  here  given  by  the  commentator,  if  properly 
traced,  would  assist  in  establishing  either  the  date 
when  the  Ponte  Molle  was  finally  restored,  or  the  date 


124     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

of  the  composition  of  the  commentary  contained  in 
this  codex,  or,  finally,  the  identity  of  the  commentator 
himself.  Compare  the  account  given  by  Piendibeni 
{op.  cit.,  pp.  269-70). 

15.  Compare  above,  n.  13. 

16.  Piendibeni  strangely  explains  (Avena,  p.  271): 
"of  birds;  the  less  important  men;  of  thieves:  the 
powerful  and  mighty;  feet:  some  were  hung  by  the 
feet,  others  by  the  neck." 

17.  Would  that  Petrarca  had  distinctly  stated  the 
identity  of  these  wild  animals.  The  families  for  which 
they  stand  are  likely  to  remain  veiled.  The  Bear 
represents  the  Orsini,  of  course,  and  all  the  MSS  have 
so  identified  it.  From  Gregorovius  we  derive  the 
further  information  that  the  Bear  was  to  be  found  only 
on  the  coat-of-arms  of  the  Monte  Rotondo  branch  of 
that  powerful  family  (V,  40,  n.  i;  cf.  Papencordt, 
p.  21). 

The  remaining  animals  have  different  claimants. 
The  Boar  has  been  variously  identified  with  the 
Colonna  (Piendibeni,  Avena,  p.  271  and  n.  2),  the 
Tebaldi  (Cod.  N,  ibid.),  and  with  the  Conti  of  Tusculum 
(Re,  Vita  di  Cola  di  Rienzo,  p.  372).  The  Serpent  has 
practically  one  claimant,  the  Gaetani  (Re,  ibid.), 
though  it  has  also  been  identified  with  the  Anibaldi 
(Cod.  V,  Avena,  ibid.).  The  Lions  are  almost  certainly 
meant  for  the  Savelli  (Greg.,  V,  643,  n.  i;  Re,  op.  ciL, 
p.  372;  cf.  Piendibeni,  in  Avena,  p.  271).  The  Eagles 
seem  to  represent  the  Prefect  of  the  city,  Giovanni  di 
Vico  (Papencordt,  p.  23;  Piendibeni,  ibid.),  though  Re 
identifies  them  with  another  branch  of  the  Conti  of 


PETRARCA'S  ECLOGUE  5  125 

Tusculum  (ibid.),  and  Codex  M  of  Piendibeni's  Com- 
mentary with  the  Conti  of  Rome  (Avena,  p.  271,  n.  2). 

18.  Cod.    33,    Plut.    52,   Laur.    (Avena,    p.    215) 
adriaticum  et  occeanum;   Piendibeni  (op.  cit.,  p.  271) 
Italie  et  Africe;    Codex  N  (op.  cit.,  p.   271,  n.   2) 
calabrie   et   lombardie.    Judging   from   the   verses   of 
Petrarca  immediately   following,   it  is   certain   that, 
without  reference  to  East  or  West,  to  North  or  South, 
he  meant  simply  that  all  of  the  Italian  peninsula  had 
been  awakened  by  the  reports  of  Cola's  deeds.     Those 
beyond  the  confines  of  Italy,  "the  Moors  and  the 
shepherds  of  Ind,"  will  be  aroused  if  Cola  "raise 
his  voice." 

19.  Vita,  I,  12,  cols.  765,  767:  "The  fame  of  so 
virtuous  a  man  spread  throughout  the  entire  world. 
All  Christendom  was  aroused,  as  if  awakening  from 
sleep.  A  certain  citizen  of  Bologna,  who  had  been  a 
slave  of  the  Soldan  of  Babylon,  was  the  first  who 
recovered  his  freedom.  He  made  his  way  to  Rome  as 
directly  as  he  could.  He  said  that  it  had  been  reported 
to  the  great  Rajah  that  a  man  of  the  people — a  man  of 
great  justice — ^had  risen  to  power  in  the  city  of  Rome. 
Whereat  the  Rajah,  fearing  for  himself,  answered  and 
said:  'May  Mahomet  and  Saint  Elimason  help 
Jerusalem,'  that  is  to  say,  the  country  of  the  Saracens." 
The  credulity  of  the  ancient  chronicler,  and  the  uncon- 
scious, bitter  satire  of  the  anecdote  are  alike  delightful. 

20.  Compare  Var.,  XL VIII,  n.  3. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

After  the  first  of  August  events  at  Rome 
developed  very  rapidly.  In  a  letter  to  the 
Pope  written  between  August  15  and  31,  Cola 
di  Rienzo  reported  the  astonishing  details  of 
his  coronation  on  August  15,  1347.  Even 
before  receiving  this  letter,  Clement  VI,  on 
August  21,  1347,  had  written  to  Cardinal 
Bertrand  de  Deux,  informing  him  (among  other 
things)  of  the  coronation  of  the  Tribune  which 
was  to  have  taken  place  on  August  15.  Such 
knowledge  he  could  draw  from  the  letter  of 
Cola  dated  August  5,  which  he  may  have 
received  on  the  very  morning  of  the  21st,  and 
from  which,  in  fact,  he  quotes.  We  give  the 
portion  of  the  Pope's  letter  which  is  necessary 
for  our  understanding  (Theiner,  II,  No.  175, 
pp.  179-80,  beginning  with  the  words  Post  hoc 
autem) : 

Afterward,  however,  and  before  said  letters  of  ours 
had  reached  them,  said  Bishop  and  Cola  dispatched 
ambassadors  and  envoys  to  us  [sc,  Messer  Giovanni, 
with  letter  of  August  5],  and  humbly  besought  that  we 
should  deign  to  confirm  them  in  the  office  of  Tribime, 
or  at  any  rate  to  renew  for  them  the  grant  of  such  office. 
While  we  deliberated  with  our  brethren  [in  Consistory  ?] 
126 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  127 

as  to  what  was  to  be  done  in  the  matter,  we  learned 
from  the  indirect  and  the  direct  reports  of  many,  that 
said  Cola,  not  content  with  the  title  of  Rector  con- 
ferred upon  him  by  us,  but  still  styling  himself  Tribune, 
had,  together  with  several  of  his  fellow-citizens,  girded 
himself  with  the  belt  of  knighthood  on  the  ist  of  August 
just  passed.  We  learned,  furthermore,  that  he  had 
appointed  the  day  of  the  Assumption  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin  Mary  (which  likewise  is  just  passed  but  which 
was  then  still  to  come)  for  receiving  the  laurel  wreath, 
with  which,  as  he  claims  [cf.  Cola's  letter  of  August  5, 
in  Epistolario,  p.  43,  1.  i].  Tribunes  were  wont  to  be 
crowned  in  ancient  times.  We  learned,  also,  that  he 
had  invited  to  said  coronation  the  Syndics  of  all  the 
cities  and  of  all  the  famous  places  of  Italy;  that  he  had 
begun  to  strike  a  new  currency  and  to  make  many  other 
innovations.  Among  other  innovations,  he  is  said  to 
have  issued  various  orders  to  several  individuals  and 
to  Communes  within  the  territory  of  the  church,  and 
to  have  imposed  upon  them  unaccustomed  burdens  of 
taxation.  From  these  facts  it  is  palpably  evident  that 
he  is  aiming  at  the  occupation  and  the  usurpation  of 
the  territory  of  that  same  church,  to  withdraw  it  from 
the  dominion  of  said  church,  and  to  subject  it  to  the 
sway  of  the  Romans. 

It  is  likely,  we  suppose,  that  these  and  other  innova- 
tions instituted  in  that  city  have  come  to  thy  notice; 
and  unless  an  opportune  remedy  be  quickly  applied, 
perilous  scandals  and  serious  dangers  may  arise  there- 
from— as  thy  discretion  can  readily  understand. 
Therefore,  desiring  to  obviate  such  scandals  and  such 


128      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

dangers,  and  hoping  that,  by  the  exercise  of  thy 
foresight  and  by  the  grace  of  God,  a  timely  and  effectual 
remedy  may  be  employed,  we,  by  this  apostolic  letter, 
bid  thy  discretion  that  without  any  delay  thou  get 
ready  to  betake  thyself  at  a  moment's  notice  as  far  as 
said  city  or  its  neighborhood,  provided  this  can  be  done 
without  serious  prejudice  to  the  conduct  of  those 
affairs  in  the  kingdom  of  Sicily  which  have  already 
been  intrusted  to  thee.  We  bid  thee  to  betake  thyself 
thither  that  thou  mayest  provide  against  such  innova- 
tions and  for  the  safety  of  the  city,  in  accordance  with 
the  power  conferred  upon  thee  by  thy  liege  lord;  and 
that  thou  mayest  diligently  strive  to  provide  a  remedy 
in  due  season,  for  every  possible  avenue  must  be  closed 
to  the  dangers  and  the  evils  which  can  arise. 

We  shall  unhesitatingly  dispatch  to  thee  whatever 
letters  will  seem  to  thee  necessary  for  this  purpose, 
whatever  letters,  indeed,  thou  thyself  wilt  ask  for  and 
dictate.  For  it  seems  to  us  and  to  said  brethren  of  ours, 
that  said  affairs  of  the  city,  on  account  both  of  their 
great  difl5culty  and  of  the  dangers  which  must  be 
avoided  (dangers  which  threaten  a  very  probable  loss 
unless  proper  measures  for  their  remedy  be  taken  in 
advance),  absolutely  require  either  thy  presence  or 
that  of  some  other  of  said  brethren.  If,  however,  the 
management  of  affairs  in  said  kingdom  render  thy 
presence  indispensable,  so  much  so  that  thou  canst  not, 
perchance,  absent  thyself  thence  without  serious 
prejudice  thereto,  then  do  not  fail  to  inform  us  immedi- 
ately, through  our  beloved  son  ....  the  bearer  of 
these  presents,  both  of  the  impossibility  of  thy  leaving 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  129 

and  of  whatever  thou  judgest  that  we  can  advanta- 
geously do  with  reference  to  these  matters  in  the  city. 

In  order,  however,  that  thou  mayest  be  more  fully 
informed  regarding  that  which  has  already  been  done 
in  said  matters,  we  inclose  copies  of  letters  which  we 
have  recently  forwarded  to  said  Bishop,  to  Cola,  and 
to  the  Roman  people  [see  the  beginning  of  this  quota- 
tion], and  we  furthermore  inclose  copies  of  other  letters 
as  well.  Finally,  we  have  sent  a  full  statement  of  our 
knowledge  of  the  above-mentioned  matters  to  our 
venerable  brother  Matteo,  Bishop  of  Verona,  and  we 
have  provided  that  he  be  detailed  to  said  city  and 
ultimately  to  thee. 

Given  at  Avignon,  on  the  21st  of  August,  and  in  the 
6th  year  [of  our  pontificate]. 

We  may  safely  assume  that  Cola  was  no  more 
expeditious  in  sending  to  the  Pope  a  report  of 
what  had  occurred  on  August  15  than  he  had 
been  in  making  a  report  of  what  had  occurred  on 
August  I  and  2.  We  saw  that  on  that  occasion 
his  letter  was  dated  August  5,  representing  a 
delay  of  three  days,  even  assuming  that  Messer 
Giovanni  started  on  his  journey  the  very  same 
day.  A  similar  delay,  or  even  a  shorter  delay, 
on  the  present  occasion  of  the  coronation 
would  have  afforded  ample  time  to  some  papal 
agent.  Bishop  Raymond  let  us  say,  to  draw  up  a 
scathing  arraignment  of  Cola's  sixfold  corona- 
tion.   On  August  21,  therefore,  the  Pope  was 


130     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

sufficiently  alarmed  (as  we  have  just  seen)  to 
bid  Cardinal  Bertrand  keep  a  watchful  eye  on 
Rome,  and,  if  possible,  to  adjourn  to  that  city 
from  his  post  at  the  Neapohtan  court. 

The  reports  of  the  deeds  of  August  15  must 
have  been  raining  in  upon  the  Pope  from  all 
sides  during  the  last  days  of  August.  His  dis- 
pleasure against  the  man  who,  instead  of 
continuing  to  crush  the  barons,  was  now 
turning  his  attention  to  questions  affecting  the 
temporal  domain  of  the  papacy  in  Italy;  who, 
in  imitation  of  the  ancient  days,  extended  the 
rights  of  Roman  citizenship  to  all  Itahans;  his 
displeasure  against  this  man,  we  repeat,  must 
have  been  mounting  higher  and  higher.  What- 
ever sentiments  of  mercy  and  of  forbearance  he 
may  have  nourished  must  have  been  quite 
thoroughly  stifled  by  the  ultramontane  cardi- 
nals by  whom  he  was  surrounded.  Therefore 
it  is  quite  possible  that  by  the  time  the  unsus- 
pecting messenger  bearing  Cola's  coronation 
letter  {Epistolario,  No.  XXII)  reached  the 
south  of  France,  the  Pope  and  his  household 
had  already  determined  upon  an  actual  break 
with  Rome  and  upon  open  opposition  to  the 
Tribune.  The  thorough  beating  administered 
to  this  innocent  messenger  was  the  first  blow 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  131 

struck  after  this  decision  had  been  reached, 
and  the  turbulent  Durance  had  become  a 
fourteenth-century  Rubicon. 

Whether  the  instructions  for  such  beating 
were  issued  by  the  Pope  himself,  or  by  one  of 
the  cardinals  of  his  household,  is  a  matter  which 
we  cannot  decide  at  this  distance  of  time.  The 
only  statement  that  we  have  is  that  of  Cola 
himself;  and  in  this  connection  it  must,  of 
course,  be  taken  with  aU  due  caution.  It 
occurs  in  the  letter  of  September  17,  written,  it 
will  be  remembered,  to  the  papal  notary, 
Rinaldo  Orsini.  We  quote  {Epistolario,  No. 
XXIII,  U.130-S1): 

We  are  not  writing  to  our  liege  lord  the  Pope,  nor  to 
other  cardinals,  because  we  believe  that  a  worthy 
embassy  representing  both  ourselves  and  the  Roman 
people  will  be  dispatched  to  the  Curia.  Nor  do  we 
intend  to  trouble  ourselves  about  keeping  many  rep- 
resentatives at  the  papal  court.  God  and  the  truth, 
to  whom  all  hearts  lie  open,  will  judge  between  us  and 
our  detractors.  We  are  fully  aware,  indeed,  that,  as  a 
reward  for  our  good  works,  we  are  assailed  in  Avignon 
undeservedly,  yea  even  to  the  displeasure  of  God.  We 
are  fully  aware  that  we  are  there  charged  with  the  sin 
of  having  taken  care  of  our  person  on  the  Sabbath, 
and  this,  forsooth,  by  men  who  regard  our  works  mad- 
ness, and  our  life  disgraceful.  Our  hope  is  in  God, 
from  whom  we  hope  for  everlasting  rewards  hereafter. 


132     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Yesterday  [sc,  September  i6]  I  received  news  that, 
as  our  messenger  was  approaching  the  Curia  with 
dispatches,  and  just  as  he  had  advanced  beyond  the 
Durance,  his  letters  were  taken  away  from  him  and 
were  rent  in  pieces;  that  the  wand  which  he  bore  was 
broken  over  his  head;  that  the  letter-case  which  hung 
at  his  side  was  likewise  snatched  from  him  and 
shattered;  and,  finally,  that  he  was  told  that  instruc- 
tions had  been  issued  for  a  similar  reception  to  each 
and  every  one  of  our  couriers.  And  so  he  has  returned 
to  us  empty-handed,  and  with  his  head  covered  with 
gore.  The  reverence  due  to  our  lord  and  master  the 
Pope  subdues  and  checks  the  righteous  indignation  of 
my  soul,  great  though  it  be.  Otherwise,  in  defense  of 
our  courier,  we  should  take  legal  action  against  the 
ruler,  the  governing  body,  and  the  people  of  the  city 
of  Avignon. 

With  a  struggle  we  jdeld  to  the  reverence  due  to  our 
lord  and  master  the  Pope,  hoping  that,  by  an  edict  of 
His  Holiness,  such  evils  may  be  corrected,  so  that  they 
may  not  recur  in  the  future.  However,  we  reserve  for 
the  deliberation  of  our  own  parliament  the  question  of 
taking  said  legal  action. 

Given  on  the  Campidoglio,  where  we  live  a  righteous 
life  under  the  reign  of  justice,  on  the  17th  day  of  the 
month  of  September,  in  the  first  indiction,  and  in  the 
first  year  of  the  City's  freedom. 

The  news  of  the  beating  of  Cola's  courier 
was  received  by  Petrarca  at  the  Fountain  of  the 
Sorgue  during  the  j&rst  week  of  September. 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  133 

His  indignation  and  his  anger  immediately 
urged  him  to  write  to  Cola  the  following  letter, 
the  most  bitter  and  the  most  violent  which 
he  had  yet  penned  against  Avignon  and  the 
enemies  of  the  Romans. 


TO  THE  PRINCE  OF  THE  ROMANS 
(App.  Litl,  VIII;  Sine  Titido,  II) 

Thine  Excellency's  cornier,  who  has  recently 
experienced  cruel  treatment,  wiU  bear  witness 
to  thee  of  the  kindness  and  the  mercy,  aye,  of 
the  justice,  which  thou  mayest  expect  in  these 
quarters.  A  new  species  of  barbarity,  indeed, 
that  a  youth,  unescorted,  unsuspecting,  and 
entirely  innocent  of  all  blame,  should  have  been 
set  upon  as  if  an  enemy!  His  ambassador's 
wand,  which  they  should  have  respected  and 
feared  (if  anything  be  considered  sacred  in  their 
eyes),  and  likewise  his  letter-case,  which  was 
filled  with  most  important  and  grateful  dis- 
patches, were  both  phed  about  his  innocent  head 
until  they  broke  to  pieces.  The  letters  them- 
selves were  torn  and  scattered  to  the  winds, 
although  they  might  have  softened  hearts  of 
stone.  And  this  is  hospitaHty!  this  is  charity! 
Thy    messenger    was    seized    at    the    River 


134     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Druentia.  There  he  was  tortured  and  scourged, 
and  forbidden  an  entrance  to  the  city.  And 
now,  his  features  covered  with  gore,  he  casts 
himself  at  thy  feet  and  deHvers  his  message  of 
threats  and  blows  and  lashes/  O  river,  truly 
art  thou  named  the  Durance  in  the  language  of 
the  people,  for  truly  dost  thou  exhibit  the 
hardened  insensibihty  of  the  inhabitants.* 
Some  authors,  indeed,  call  thee  the  Ruentia, 
naming  thee  from  thy  rushing  current.  Thou 
art  a  headlong  and  destructive  stream,  but  the 
men  dweUing  along  thy  banks  are  not  more 
gentle  than  the  waters  rushing  in  thy  channels. 
They,  too,  are  ever  ready  to  run  with  equal  fury 
to  the  commission  of  most  revolting  crimes. 

O  rivers,  thus  elated  at  your  shameless  deed ! 
0  irreverent  and  impious  streams !  O  Fountain 
of  the  Sorgue  that  dost  swaUow  waters  not  thine, 
and  surgest  so  proudly  against  thy  master! 
O  all-corroding  Rhone!  Is  it  thus  ye  welcome 
the  Tiber?  Is  it  thus  ye  honor  your  queen, 
Rome?  O  Avignon,  named  (if  we  are  to 
beHeve  scholars)  from  thy  vineyards  which 
yield  most  bitter  grapes  and  a  vintage  of  blood, 
is  this  thy  respect  for  Rome,  thy  mistress  ?  Art 
thou  thus  mindful  of  thyself  and  of  her  station, 
pf  thy  slavish  condition  and  of  her  supreme 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  135 

authority?  Woe  unto  thee,  unhappy  city, 
the  day  she  begins  to  awaken  from  her  sleep, 
yea,  the  day  she  Hfts  her  head  and  beholds  the 
injuries  and  the  wounds  inflicted  upon  her  as 
she  slumbered.3  Even  now  she  is  roused. 
BeHeve  me,  she  sleeps  no  longer,  but  is  silent, 
and  in  her  silence  ponders  upon  dreams  of  the 
past  and  resolves  what  must  be  done  when 
she  arises. 

Attend  yet  awhile,  O  Avignon,  and  thou  wilt 
witness  mighty  deeds  performed  on  earth. 
Thou  wilt  marvel  at  the  accomplishment  of 
tasks  previously  judged  impossible.  Dost  thou 
not  reahze  who  thou  art,  nor  where,  nor  to 
whom  subordinate?  Dost  thou  not  know 
whence  comes  the  name  Provence?  What 
frenzy  is  this,  what  madness?  Has  forget- 
fulness  of  past  storms  crept  insensibly  upon 
thee  merely  because  the  skies  have  been  fair 
for  a  time  ?  Is  it  thus  thou  worshipest  her  who 
ruled  all  the  provinces  ?  She  was  but  stunned, 
and  thou  thoughtest  her  dead.  Thou  thoughtest 
thyself  restored  to  liberty  by  the  death  of  thy 
mistress,  but  esteemed  thyseh  still  a  slave 
unless  thou  shouldst  confirm  thy  Hberty  by  the 
commission  of  licentious  deeds.  Thou  didst 
desire  to  be  of  some  accoimt  in  the  world; 


136     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

thou  didst  desire,  at  any  rate,  to  give  to  others 
this  impression.  For  some  time  and  with  due 
deUberation  have  we  gratified  thy  wishes. 

But  it  is  now  time  that  thou  heed  our  advice 
and  recover  thy  senses.  As  thou  knowest,  the 
power  of  many  does  not  he  so  much  in  their  own 
strength  as  in  the  weakness  of  others.  Such 
power,  therefore,  must  needs  vanish  when  the 
opponent  regains  his  strength.  Then  only  wilt 
thou,  Avignon,  know  thy  proper  place,  when 
thou  dost  realize  how  powerful  Rome  still  is — 
Rome,  whose  envoys  thou  now  tramplest  into 
the  dust,  supposing  that  there  is  none  to 
avenge  the  wrong.  Thou  art  deceived;  thou 
playest  the  part  of  a 'fool;  thou  actest  like  a 
madman.  God  in  heaven  will  be  the  Avenger; 
and  on  earth,  one  of  our  fellow-beings  who 
truly  worships  that  God  whom  thou  dost  not 
know  will  Hkewise  avenge  the  deed.  There  are 
forces  at  play  whose  power  thou  canst  not  even 
conceive.  Ah  wretched  city!  I  hope  that 
thou  wilt  discover  them  by  sad  experience,  and 
shortly.  The  wrongs  which  thou  hast  heaped 
upon  us  have  restored  to  us  our  strength.  The 
moment  we  began  to  grieve  over  them,  that 
very  moment,  by  great  leaps  and  bounds,  we 
regained  our  full  health  and  vigor."* 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  137 

But  thou,  O  remarkable  man,  take  pity  upon 
our  condition.  Give  thy  hand  to  the  state 
which  endeavors  to  rise  to  its  feet,  and  prove  to 
these  men  of  httle  faith  the  power  which  Rome 
still  possesses,  s  As  for  the  rest  of  Italy,  who 
can  doubt  that  it  can  again  regain  the  power  it 
once  wielded  ?  To  the  accompHshment  of  this 
end  I  maintain  that  there  is  lacking  neither 
strength,  nor  resources,  nor  courage.  Harmony 
alone  is  lacking.  Give  me  this,  and  by  the 
words  of  this  very  letter  do  I  predict  the 
immediate  ruin  and  destruction  of  those  who 
deride  the  name  of  ItaUans.^  And  thou,  I  say, 
thou  whom  the  fates  have  appointed  the  instru- 
ment of  this  great  deliverance,  persevere  as  thou 
hast  begun.  Fear  not;  the  rays  of  the  sun  will 
dispel  the  gloomy  clouds  in  thy  sky.  The 
meshes  spread  by  these  puny  foxes  cannot  resist 
the  Uon's  paw.  Thou  hast  made  a  glorious 
beginning.  Advance  bravely  and  consistently 
unto  the  very  end.  Make  clear  to  these  men 
that  their  pride  is  far  inferior  to  the  lowHness  of 
the  poor;  that  avarice  is  far  meaner  than 
generosity;  that  intrigue  coupled  with  wisdom 
is  folly;  and  that  their  passions  are  scandalous 
when  weighed  in  the  balance  with  self-restraint 
and    decorum.     Finally,    let    the    disguise    of 


138     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

hypocrisy  acknowledge  itself  of  none  effect 
when  submitted  to  the  refulgent  rays  of 
true  virtue. 

Come  now!  no  further  delay!  Crush, 
trample,  grind  under  foot  this  frog  which,  with 
its  ridiculous  puffing,  counterfeits  the  ox's 
massive  bulk.  I  do  not  speak  to  urge  thee  on. 
Thou  requirest  not  one  to  incite  thee,  nor  one 
to  check.  Thou  art  thine  own  spur,  thine  own 
curb.  I  have  spoken  because  I  could  no  longer 
bear  in  silence  the  anguish  of  my  soul.  My 
grief  has  been  rendered  more  acute  by  my 
dwelling  upon  it,  and  it  has  multipHed  my 
laments.  Words  have  given  fuel  to  my  indig- 
nation, and,  in  turn,  my  indignation  to  my  pen. 
Who,  indeed,  could  behold  such  spectacles  and 
remain  calm  ?  The  rights  of  nations  have  been 
outraged  in  the  person  of  thy  envoy;  the 
common  bond  of  humanity  has  been  cut 
asunder.  Oh  the  wrath  that  made  men 
unmindful  of  their  honor!  Even  among  the 
barbarian  nations  would  thy  messenger  have 
received  kindlier  reception  than  among  those 
whom  thou  didst  consider  Romans  and  to 
whose  good  will  thou  wert  entitled. 

Let  them  turn  over  the  pages  of  history — if, 
forsooth,  they  have  eyes  for  aught  but  riches, 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  139 

which  they  regard  so  longingly.  Let  them 
seek  and  give  answer.  What  barbarian  nation 
has  ever  violated  the  sacred  rights  of  ambassa- 
dors, except  very  rarely,  and  then  only  for  the 
gravest  of  reasons  ?  The  deceitful  and  faithless 
rabble  of  the  Carthaginians  did  once  attempt 
to  maltreat  our  ambassadors,  but  their  armed 
hands  were  checked  by  the  intervention  of  their 
magistrates.''  In  the  present  instance,  who, 
pray,  checked  the  violence  of  the  people? 
Who  suffered  punishment  for  his  deed  of  shame  ? 
But  perhaps  I  demand  too  much.  Who,  then, 
raised  his  voice  in  censure  or  in  denunciation  ? 
How  much  safer  would  it  have  been  for  thy 
envoy  to  travel  in  the  country  of  the  Parthians, 
where  the  Roman  legions  of  Crassus  were  cut 
off  and  vanquished!  How  much  more  securely 
would  he  have  gone  into  Germany,  in  spite  of 
the  slaughtered  Teutons  and  of  the  triumphant 
Marius!  How  much  more  safely  guarded  in 
either  case  than  in  coming  hither  to  represent 
thee,  a  devout  and  dutfful  son  of  the  Roman 
church!  Surely,  neither  the  insolence  of  a 
conqueror,  nor  the  rage  of  the  oppressed,  would 
have  presumed  so  far  as  has  the  hatred  of  thy 
false  friends.  With  greater  ease  would  thy 
youthful  envoy  have  scaled  the  wooded  heights 


I40     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

of  Pelion  and  the  frozen  mountains  of  Taurus, 
even  in  the  depth  of  winter,  than  he  has 
J  traversed  the  valley  of  Orgon^  in  the  autumnal 
season.'  With  greater  freedom  would  he  have 
swum  across  the  Ganges  and  the  Don  than 
across  the  Durance. 

I  have  wished  to  tell  thee  all  this  merely  to 
give  an  outlet  to  my  feelings.  As  to  thyself,  O 
noble  man,  be  not  swerved  from  thy  course  by 
these  doers  of  evil,  nor  by  any  appearances  of 
false  power.  To  be  able  to  inflict  injury  upon 
others  is  not  true  greatness,  nor  is  it  a  sign  of 
power.  The  smallest  and  meanest  of  insects 
can  do  as  much.  True  greatness  Ues  in  being 
able  to  do  good;  even  nobler  is  the  desire  to  do 
good.  Very  wicked  men  have  had  it  in  their 
power  to  harm  an  innocent  boy,  and  to  make 
him  this  shabby  return  for  the  joyful  message 
of  which  he  was  the  bearer.'**  What  greatness 
is  there  in  this?  In  truth,  what  is  it  but  a 
power  whose  value  must  be  reckoned  at  less 
than  zero  ?  If  every  sin  is  to  be  considered  of 
zero  value,  then  the  greater  the  sin  the  greater 
must  be  its  negative  value.  In  any  case,  then, 
the  greatness  of  sin  (if  the  term  greatness  may 
be  used  in  this  connection)  is  always  zero.     It 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  141 

is  this  species  of  greatness  which  these  honorable 
men  have  gained  by  the  exercise  of  their  arts. 
It  is  such  greatness  as  a  scorpion  might  have 
achieved,  or  a  spider! 

They  have  visited  their  wrath  upon  one  of 
thy  following;  but  the  more  significant  aspect 
of  this  act  of  cruelty  is  that  they  have  wished  to 
do  thee  harm.  Nor  do  I  mean  thee  in  thine 
own  person,  but  as  the  defender  of  Hberty  and 
of  justice.  This,  and  none  other,  is  the  cause 
of  their  hatred  for  thee;  hberty  and  justice, 
indeed,  they  hate  per  se,  knowing  full  weU  that 
such  concepts  are  diametrically  opposed  to  that 
regime  which  is  their  pride.  Consider  the  lofti- 
ness of  thine  own  soul,  and  thou  wilt  scorn  and 
despise  the  arrogant  and  empty  goal  which  they 
have  set  before  themselves.  Violent  and  severe 
are  the  measures  which  they  have  adopted; 
but  after  aU  they  are  matters  of  smaU  moment. 
Far  greater  questions  are  at  stake.  These  petty 
outbursts  of  their  wrath  will  pass  away  even  as 
other  things  of  this  earth,  and  the  avenging  of 
thy  envoy  is  but  part  of  the  vengeance  which 
the  state  will  exact.  Farewell,  and  mayest 
thou  bring  to  completion  the  work  which  thou 
hast  begun. 


142     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

NOTES 

I.  We  now  return  once  again  to  the  complicated  sub- 
ject of  the  postal  messengers.  We  have  already  endeav- 
ored to  prove:  firstly,  the  identity  of  the  messenger  in 
Vita  I,  lo,  with  the  first  messenger  sent  by  Cola  to  the 
Pope  in  the  early  days  of  June;  and  secondly,  the 
identity  of  the  Giovanni  of  Var.,  XL,  with  the  messen- 
ger of  the  Vita  I,  21,  and  also  with  the  bearer  of  Cola's 
letter  dated  August  5  (see  Var.,  XL,  last  note). 

Our  task  in  the  case  of  this  beaten  courier  is  not 
quite  so  complex.  We  identify  him  with  the  bearer  of 
Cola's  third  extant  letter  to  the  Pope,  No.  XXII  of 
the  Epistolario  published  by  Gabrielli.  In  this  letter, 
Cola  notified  his  liege  lord  of  his  own  coronation  on 
August  15,  "the  fantastic  caricature  in  which  ended  the 
imperium  of  Charles  the  Great"  (Greg.,  VI,  284). 
The  letter,  therefore,  must  be  dated  some  time  after 
the  coronation  date,  hence,  between  August  15  and  31. 
The  Pope  did  not  know  of  the  actual  accomplishment  of 
this  piece  of  folly  when  he  wrote  the  letter  to  Bertrand 
de  Deux  (Theiner,  II,  No.  175,  of  August  21,  1347. 
It  is  this  letter  which  has  enabled  us  to  calculate  an 
interval  of  16  days  as  the  minimum  time  required  for 
a  courier  to  travel  from  Rome  to  Avignon.  Such  period 
of  time  has  afforded  a  good  working  hypothesis). 

A  more  accurate  analysis  of  the  incident  of  the  beaten 
messenger  reveals  some  interesting  coincidences.  The 
messenger  was  attacked  at  the  Durance  according  to 
Petrarca  (Frac,  III,  p.  532:  Ad  Druentiam  captus). 
But  Cola,  who  had  received  the  verbal  report  of  his 
messenger  on  September  16,  wrote  with  greater  pre- 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  143 

cision  on  the  following  day  to  Rinaldo  Orsini,  stating 
that  the  attack  had  been  made  beyond  the  Durance 
(Gabrielli,  op.  cit.,  p.  66,  1.  141).  We  shall  further 
remark  that,  since  the  letters  which  said  messenger  was 
bearing  were  torn  to  shreds  and  scattered  to  the  winds, 
it  would  seem  almost  imperative  to  assume  that  the 
Pope  received  from  sources  other  than  the  Tribune  the 
information  therein  contained.  Finally,  in  connection 
with  the  same  fact,  it  is  interesting  to  dwell  a  moment 
upon  the  note  by  Gabrielli  (op.  cit.,  p,  60,  n.  i),  to  the 
effect  that  in  the  Codex  from  which  he  drew  No.  XXII 
of  the  Epistolario,  said  letter  comes  to  a  sudden  break, 
which  is  clear  evidence  that  the  letter  did  not  originally 
end  as  it  now  does.  This  fact  may  be  pertinent  to  the 
question  of  the  messenger's  torn  letters,  or  it  may  not. 
It  has  been  impossible,  however,  to  resist  the  tempta- 
tion to  point  out  these  coincidences. 

2.  Petrarca  goes  from  the  classical  form  of  this 
name,  Druentia,  to  the  form  Durentia  from  which 
the  modem  French  Durance  is  derived.  He  further- 
more plays  upon  the  word,  saying  that  the  name 
Durance  fitly  expresses  the  durities  (hardened  insen- 
sibility) of  the  inhabitants.  In  the  beginning  of  the 
next  paragraph  Petrarca  continues  in  the  same  strain, 
employing  adjectives  having  the  same  ring  as  their 
nouns:  insurgens  Sorga  and  Rhodanus  rodens.  The 
same  spirit  may  have  suggested  to  him  a  similar  play 
on  words  in  the  sentence  immediately  following,  where 
he  refers  to  the  vineyards  of  Avignon — 0  Avinio,  cuius 
vinea — thus  giving  a  derivation  for  the  name  which  we 
have  not  been  able  to  discover  anywhere. 


144     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

3.  Compare  the  second  stanza  of  the  Canzone 
Spirto  Gentil,  given  in  Var.,  XL VIII,  n.  32. 

4.  Lest  the  reader  suppose  that  he  has  sounded  the 
depths  of  Petrarca's  hatred  for  Avignon,  before  the 
present  mild  rumblings  die  away  we  shall  place  before 
him  the  deep  thunder  of  the  letter  Sine  Titulo,  VIII 
(Opera,  ed.  1581,  No.  7,  p.  718,  Si  quicquid  animus 
meitsfert;  cf.  Carducci,  pp.  148-49). 

In  reading  this  letter,  we  must  never  lose  sight  of  the 
fact  that  Petrarca's  reason  for  his  thorough  hatred  of 
Avignon  was  due  to  its  being  the  home  of  the  papacy. 
The  glory,  the  power,  and  the  prestige  thus  acquired  by 
the  French  city  rightfully  belonged  to  Rome.  With 
the  Curia  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Tiber,  Petrarca 
felt  positive  that  the  many  evils  distracting  and 
rending  Italy,  the  wars  of  commune  against  commune, 
and  the  everlasting,  widespread  contests  of  Guelphs 
and  Ghibellines  would  be  abated  in  great  degree.  In 
the  restoration  of  the  church  back  to  the  Rock  on  which 
it  was  founded,  Petrarca  saw  the  first  steps  toward  the 
realization  of  his  most  cherished  dreams,  the  creating 
of  a  free  and  united  Italy.  In  a  word,  Petrarca  was  the 
first  Italian  to  stand  forth  as  a  patriot  along  national 
lines,  and  to  voice  the  sentiments  of  Italy  for  the 
Italians,  and  the  Italians  sufficient  unto  themselves. 
To  such  a  man  the  continuance  of  the  Papal  See  at 
Avignon,  and  the  undoubtedly  scandalous  atmosphere 
reigning  in  the  papal  court  and  consequently  through- 
out the  city,  were  more  than  sufficient  cause  for  his 
prophetic  thunderings. 

Unfortunately  the  letter  which  we  shall  quote  is 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  145 

among  those  grouped  together  as  Sine  TUulo,  that  is  to 
say,  among  those  letters  in  which  Petrarca  suppressed 
the  names  of  those  to  whom  they  were  addressed  for 
fear  of  the  possible  consequences  of  the  violent  language 
in  which  they  were  couched.  From  internal  evidences, 
however,  it  is  clear  that  the  letter  was  addressed  to  a 
bishop,  perhaps  to  his  intimate  friend  Philippe  de 
Cabassole,  Bishop  of  Cavaillon,    Here  is  the  letter: 

"If  I  should  wish  to  commit  to  writing  all  that  my 
soul  feels  on  the  condition  of  affairs  in  this  western 
Babylon,  of  which  I  so  frequently  become  a  resident 
either  through  fate  or  rather  in  atonement  for  my  sins, 
I  fear,  O  reverend  Father,  lest  I  should  heighten  my 
grief  by  my  laments,  or  lest,  by  my  inopportune  and 
unavailing  complaints,  I  should  interrupt  thy  most  holy 
cares  and  most  honorable  occupations.  In  fine,  rest 
assured  that  neither  my  pen  nor  even  that  of  Cicero 
could  render  the  subject  justice.  Whatsoever  thou 
hast  read  of  the  Assyrian  Babylon,  or  of  the  Egyptian 
Babylon;  whatsoever  thou  hast  read  of  the  four  laby- 
rinths, of  the  threshold  of  Avemus  and  of  the  forests 
of  Tartarus  and  its  lakes  of  sulphur,  is  but  a  mere 
fable  when  compared  to  these  infernal  regions. 

"Here  in  Avignon  there  is  Nimrod  [Pope  Clement 
VI,  who  was  fond  of  hunting],  builder  of  turrets  and  at 
the  same  time  sower  of  dread;  here  there  is  Semiramis 
[Viscountess  Cecilia  of  Turenne,  the  mistress  of  the 
Pontiff],  armed  with  the  quiver;  here  is  Minos,  inexor- 
ably severe;  here  is  Rhadamanthus;  here  is  Cerberus, 
the  all-devouring;  here  is  Pasiphae,  yoked  to  the 
Bull;  here,  in  the  words  of  Vergil  [Aeneid  vi.  25-26] 
is  the 

Minotaur,  of  mingled  race, 
Memorial  of  her  foul  disgrace. 

"Here,  finally,  mayest  thou  behold  whatever  chaos, 


146      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

whatever  virulence,  whatever  horror  exists  anywhere, 
or  can  be  conceived. 

"O  thou  who  hast  ever  been  happy  in  thy  good 
qualities,  well  mayest  thou  now  be  happy  for  thine 
absence  from  Avignon.  Thinkest  thou  that  this  city 
is  as  thou  once  beheldest  it  ?  Far  different  is  it,  and 
far  unlike  it.  The  Avignon  of  former  days  was,  to  be 
sure,  the  worst  of  cities,  and  the  most  abominable  of  its 
day.  But  the  Avignon  of  today,  indeed,  can  no 
longer  be  considered  a  city.  It  is  the  home  of  spooks 
and  of  goblins,  of  ghosts  and  of  specters.  In  a  word, 
it  is  now  the  sink  of  all  iniquities  and  disgrace;  it  is 
now  that  Hell  of  the  Living  sung  by  the  lips  of  David 
so  long  before  Avignon  was  founded  and  known  [Ps. 
54:16;  A.V.  Ps.  55:15]. 

"Alas!  How  frequently  thy  truly  fatherly  advice 
recurs  to  my  mind,  thy  wholesome  admonitions,  when 
thou  didst  say  to  me  as  I  was  making  preparations  for 
my  departure:  'Whither  goest  thou?  What  art  thou 
doing?  What  ambition  drags  thee  and  makes  thee 
forgetful  of  thyself?  Knowest  thou  not  what  thou 
seekest  and  what  abandonest  ?  Hence  do  I  ask,  what 
is  it  thou  dost  set  about  so  keenly  ?  Whither  hastenest 
thou  ?  If  I  have  come  to  know  thee  well,  I  assure  thee 
that  thou  wilt  repent  of  thy  course.  Dost  thou,  who 
hast  so  frequently  experienced  the  snares  and  fetters 
of  the  Curia,  know  not  that,  when  thou  hast  once  been 
entrapped  thereby,  thou  wilt  not  be  able  to  release 
thyself  at  will  ?' 

"When  thou  hadst  concluded  with  these  and  other 
persuasive  arguments,  I  had  no  answer  to  make  except 
that  I  was  returning  to  well-known  afflictions  because  I 
was  held  fast  by  my  love  for  my  friends.  Thus  did 
I  answer  thee,  nor  did  I  speak  falsely.  Up  to  this  day  I 
have  not  repented  of  that  love,  but  I  am  uncertain 
whether  I  repent  having  lost  my  liberty  out  of  love  for 
my  friends.    I  assure  thee  that  I  am  grateful  for  thy 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  147 

counsels,  so  ill  received  then  and  now  approved  of  at  a 
late  hour.  Hitherto,  my  not  hearkening  to  thy  words 
of  advice  has  not  been  unattended  by  mortification. 
But  I  shall  obey  thee  better  hereafter,  if  ever  I  escape 
hence.  Of  this  I  do  not  despair,  if  Christ  stretch  forth 
his  hand.    To  this  end  do  1  bend  my  energies. 

"It  was  a  sense  of  shame.  Father,  that  forbade  my 
writing  this  to  thee  sooner;  for  it  is  shameful  and 
unbecoming  in  a  man  to  wish  that  which  he  shortly 
afterward  no  longer  wishes." 

5.  Fam.,  VI,  2  (Frac,  I,  p.  314):  "For  who  can 
doubt  that  Rome  will  immediately  rise  to  her  feet,  if 
she  begins  to  know  herself  ?" 

6.  All  that  has  already  been  said  regarding  Petrarca's 
intense  patriotism  applies  equally  well  to  this  note. 
The  letter  which  we  hereby  give  {Sine  Titulo,  IX, 
Opera,  ed.  1581,  p.  719,  Persecutionum  duo  sunt  genera) 
constitutes  a  more  philosophical  exposition  of  Petrarca's 
doctrines  regarding  a  united  Italy. 

"There  are  two  kinds  of  oppression;  to  one  we  sub- 
mit willingly,  to  the  other  unwillingly.  Someone  else 
may,  perhaps,  discover  more  categories;  and,  indeed, 
there  are  innumerable  oppressions,  as  any  man  ad- 
vanced in  years  is  well  aware.  All  of  them,  however, 
reduce  themselves  to  an  oppression  that  is  either 
forcibly  inflicted  or  willingly  endured.  It  is  against 
our  will  that  we  endure  exile,  poverty,  theft,  disease, 
imprisonment,  slavery,  dishonor,  chains,  torture,  the 
gallows,  murder,  and  death.  On  the  contrary,  it  is 
with  our  full  consent  that  we  are  weighed  down  by  the 
yoke  of  our  vices.  With  our  full  consent  do  we  submit 
to  the  rule  of  the  vilest  of  men,  either  through  degener- 
ate fear,  or  disgraceful  inactivity,  or  dishonoring 
patience,  or  the  hope  of  vile  gain.  I  have  given 
examples  from  which  thou  mayest  grasp  my  meaning 


148     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

and  thou  mayest  collect  others  like  unto  them.  The 
former  kind  of  oppression  seems  to  many  to  be  the 
more  severe;  but  to  me  the  latter  is  the  more  intoler- 
able, for  here  the  situation  is  open  to  discussion  and 
the  calamity  receives  no  compassion. 

"  Italy  in  our  days  sighs  as  a  slave  under  the  sword  of 
this  second  species  of  oppression.  Then  only  wall  she 
see  the  end  of  her  woes  when  she  begins  to  wish  to  be 
united.  The  conditions,  I  grant,  are  hard,  but  they 
are  by  no  means  unattainable.  I  have  said  when  she 
wishes  to  be  united,  and  by  this  I  mean  that  she  will  be 
united  not  by  the  victory  of  this  or  of  that  party,  but 
by  the  abolition  of  party  lines  (non  studiis,  sed  studiorum 
termino),  and  through  an  utter  disgust  for  her  unmerited 
slavery. 

"Ye  gods!  We  were  wont  to  rule  the  greatest  and 
the  best  of  the  earth;  and  now,  alas  how  low  have  we 
fallen !  We  are  the  slaves  of  the  meanest !  Hard  is  the 
lot,  unendurable  the  change!  But,  ye  barbarian 
foreigners,  ever  stupid  in  the  past  and  now  even  mad, 
aye  raving  mad!  Ye  scoff  at  Italy,  your  queen. 
Would  that  all  the  Italians  were  of  the  same  mind  as  I, 
and  that  they  were  possessed  of  a  firmer  purpose  but  of 
a  not  lesser  love  than  is  mine!  Soon  indeed  would 
trumpery  and  nonsense  have  been  banished  and  serious 
matters  would  have  been  set  on  foot.  May  the 
all-powerful  God  attend  to  this,  if  he  doth  not  yet 
hate  us  unto  the  last  man;  may  fortune  attend  to  it,  if 
there  be  any  fortime  and  if  it  have  any  control  of  the 
affairs  of  men.  If,  however,  thou  wishest  me  to 
penetrate  beneath  the  surface,  and  to  disclose  to  thee 
what  I  really  think,  I  shall  say  that  they  scoff  with 
their  lips,  but  they  groan  in  their  hearts;  that  they 
display  a  smiling  exterior,  but  they  tremble  within. 
For  they  know  both  us  and  themselves  well  indeed, 
pretending  scorn  in  place  of  their  hatred  and  their  fear. 

"Whither  do  my  words  tend,  dost  thou  ask ?    I  am 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  149 

writing  this,  not  because  it  may  be  to  thy  advantage  to 
hear  it,  but  because  it  is  to  my  disadvantage  to  keep  it 
within  me.  My  burden  is  a  heavy  and  grievous  one, 
and  to  no  one  could  I  intrust  it  with  greater  assurance 
than  to  thee.  I  have  written  these  words  in  great 
haste  and  indignation,  an  exile  from  Jerusalem  and 
while  dwelling  in  the  midst  and  on  the  borders  of  the 
rivers  of  Babylon." 

7.  The  facts  are  these  (Livy,  xxx.  24,  25).  Toward 
the  close  of  the  second  Punic  War,  in  203  B.C.,  a  truce 
was  established  between  the  Carthaginians  and  the 
Romans  under  Scipio.  During  this  truce,  a  fleet  of  two 
hundred  transports  set  sail  from  Sicily  under  the 
escort  of  thirty  war  galleys,  the  entire  expedition  being 
commanded  by  Cn.  Octavius.  The  wind  remained 
favorable  until  the  fleet  was  almost  within  sight  of 
Africa,  when  a  calm  ensued.  This  was  followed  by 
adverse  winds  which  disarranged  the  order  of  the  fleet 
and  stranded  the  transports  here  and  there  along  the 
African  coast  in  view  of  Carthage.  Great  excitement 
at  once  prevailed  among  the  Carthaginians,  who, 
arguing  that  such  an  opportunity  for  inflicting  loss  upon 
the  Romans  ought  not  to  be  passed  by,  compelled  their 
authorities  to  go  forth  and  capture  the  vessels,  not- 
withstanding the  truce  that  had  been  agreed  to. 
Thereupon  Scipio  sent  L.  Baebius,  L.  Sergius,  and  L. 
Fabius  to  the  faithless  city  to  register  his  well-founded 
protests.  The  rest  of  the  story  we  shall  quote  from 
Petrarca's  own  epic,  the  Africa  (Book  VI,  vss.  789-94) : 
"The  rabble  received  them  with  a  savage  attack,  and  a 
black  cloud  of  missiles  flew  about  them.  The  faithless 
mob  rages.    Hands  are  stretched  forth,  and  had  it  not 


150     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

been,  perchance,  for  the  respect  due  to  their  supreme 
magistrate,  on  that  day  the  rights  of  mankind  would 
have  been  crushed  under  foot  by  fell  murder." 

8,  Orgon  is  a  small  town  of  1,300  inhabitants  (in 
1886)  in  the  Department  Bouches-du-Rhone.  It  is 
situated  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Durance,  35  kilometers 
east-northeast  of  Aries.  It  still  boasts  of  a  church 
dating  from  the  fourteenth  century,  perhaps  the  very 
one  attended  by  the  men  against  whom  Petrarca  here 
thunders  (cf.  Nouveau  diet,  de  geographic  universelle,  IV, 
[1890]).  Develay  (Lettres  d  Rienzi,  II,  18)  gives  the 
following  anecdote  in  corroboration  of  the  hereditary 
grimness  of  these  villagers:  "Everyone  knows  that  in 
1814  the  inhabitants  of  Orgon  hung  Napoleon  I  in 
effigy.  That  he  might  not  be  hung  in  reality,  the 
Emperor,  who  had  to  pass  through  this  town  on  his  way 
to  Elba,  was  obliged  to  disguise  himself  and  to  change 
his  route." 

9.  The  expression  used  by  Petrarca — quam  Orgonis 
planitiem  autumnali  tempore  (Frac,  III,  p.  535) — 
excludes  any  possibility  of  dating  the  incident  of  the 
beaten  courier  in  the  month  of  August.  We  do  not 
think  that  August  could  by  any  stretch  of  the  imagina- 
tion be  called  an  autumn  or  fall  month.  The  messenger 
must  have  been  attacked  on  September  i,  at  the  very 
earliest.  For,  allowing  a  delay  of  a  few  days  on  the 
part  of  Cola  in  sending  off  his  letter  No.  XXII,  the 
messenger  would  have  left  Rome  on  August  17,  and 
would  have  arrived  at  the  Durance  in  about  15  days, 
hence  on  September  i.  The  news  of  the  attack  on  him 
must  have  reached  Avignon  by  September  2;    and 


CORONATION  OF  COLA  151 

Petrarca  (who  was  at  Vaucluse)  perhaps  did  not  hear 
of  it  until  September  3.  The  chronological  facts  set 
forth  above  in  n.  i,  the  present  calciilation,  and  the 
autumnali  tempore  of  Petrarca,  therefore,  alike  concur 
in  dating  this  letter,  Sine  Titulo,  II,  in  the  first  week 
of  September,  1347. 

That  it  is  likely  that  the  messenger  was  beaten  on 
September  i  is  borne  out  also  by  the  following  calcu- 
lation. We  may  assume  with  safety  that  the  courier's 
return  trip  to  Rome  was  made  as  rapidly  as  he  had 
traveled  in  the  opposite  direction.  We  have  fixed  upon 
September  i  as  the  day  of  the  attack  upon  him.  Add- 
ing to  this  date  15  days  for  the  return,  we  have  the 
messenger  back  in  Rome  on  September  16,  a  date 
which  is  corroborated  by  the  "yesterday"  of  Cola's 
letter  No.  XXIII,  which  is  dated  September  17  (see 
above,  in  the  introductory  pages  to  chap.  viii). 

10.  It  is  doubtful  whether  Petrarca  really  knew  the 
contents  of  the  torn  letter.  No.  XXII  of  the  Epistolario. 
His  confidence  in  Cola  was  still  sublime,  and  in  the 
light  of  this  confidence  he  could  very  well  feel  positive 
that  any  message  from  Rome  was  a  message  of  joy. 
He  may,  of  course,  have  received  a  letter  direct  from 
Cola,  or  from  some  other  friend,  apprising  him  of  the 
coronation  on  August  15.  He  may  have  heard  of  it 
even  from  Avignon.  One  thing  is  certain :  this  letter, 
Sine  Titulo,  II,  the  first  one  to  be  written  after  the 
unpleasant  episode  at  the  Durance,  is  likewise  the  first 
one  in  which  Petrarca  addresses  Cola  as  Prince  of  the 
Romans.  To  Petrarca  the  coronation  most  assuredly 
represented  a  divinely  appointed  consummation  of  his 


152     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

cherished  dream.  In  Cola's  elevation  from  Tribune  to 
Prince  of  the  Romans  he  fancied  he  could  discern  the 
final  adjustment  of  the  question  of  the  Holy  Roman 
Empire.  In  his  fancy  he  was  certain  that  he  could 
now  discern  above  the  horizon  the  star  of  a  United 
Italy,  under  the  benevolent  guidance  of  a  man  of  the 
Italians,  elected  by  Italians  and  toiling  for  the  Italians. 


CHAPTER  IX 

After  giving  vent  to  his  enraged  feeUngs  in 
the  preceding  letter,  Petrarca  returned  to  enjoy 
the  undisturbed  peace  of  Vaucluse.  This  quiet 
retreat,  however,  was  all  too  near  Avignon. 
He  was  bound  to  receive  news  of  what  was 
going  on  in  the  papal  city;  and  among  the 
various  unpleasant  reports  which  shortly 
reached  him,  there  was  one  which  told  of  a 
gathering  of  certain  prominent  men,  who 
calmly  debated  the  question,  "Whether  or  not 
it  would  make  for  the  happiness  of  the  world  at 
large  that  the  city  of  Rome  and  Italy  should  be 
united  and  should  enjoy  peace  and  harmony." 
The  mere  propounding  of  such  a  topic  Petrarca 
judged  childish  and  absurd;  and  naturally  he 
could  not  rest  easily  until  he  had  unburdened 
his  soul  by  communicating  with  Cola. 


TO  THE  PRINCE  OF  THE  ROMANS 

{App.  Liu.,  TV;  Sine  Tittdo,  III) 

Light  is  the  cause  which  now  dampens  my 
spirits;  but  it  must  out,  for  if  neglected  it  is 
sure  to  destroy  my  physical  well-being.     It  has 

153 


154     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

stirred  up  within  me  greater  choler  and  ire 
than  one  would  think  possible.  Though  trifling 
in  its  nature,  it  has  engendered  boundless  dis- 
gust; for  it  emits  the  stench  of  a  secret,  deep, 
and  inveterate  hatred.  Thus  it  seemed  to  me, 
and  thus,  I  am  sure,  will  it  seem  to  thee.  I 
trust  that  the  incident  will  become  known  far 
and  wide,  and  that  it  will  sow  in  the  heart  of 
every  Roman  and  of  every  ItaHan  the  seeds  of  a 
righteous  indignation.  I  trust  that  the  news 
will  shake  off  the  heavy  torpor,  and  will  kindle 
once  again  the  fire  of  that  noble  genius  and 
pristine  vigor  to  which  formerly,  through 
choice  or  necessity,  the  nations  of  the  globe 
rendered  obedience.  But  now,  oh  shame!  the 
lowest  of  men  scoff  at  the  Romans!  The 
general  knowledge  of  what  has  occurred  will,  I 
hope,  accrue  greatly  to  the  advantage  of  the 
state.  A  smaU  spark  can  kindle  an  immense 
fire,  and  a  single  word  has  marked  the  inception 
of  many  great  movements. 

But  now  as  to  the  facts  themselves,  whose 
significance  will  be  measured  not  so  much  by 
what  I  say  as  by  the  displeasure  of  the  reader. 
Recently  there  were  gathered  together  certain 
men  who  pass  as  wise  in  their  own  estimation, 
but  are  not  quite  so  in  that  of  others.    A  doubt 


PETRARCA  HEARS  FROM  AVIGNON      155 

prevailed  in  their  minds,  which  after  some  time 
shaped  itself  into  the  following  inquiry: 
"  Whether  or  not  it  would  make  for  the  happi- 
ness of  the  world  at  large  that  the  city  of  Rome 
and  Italy  should  be  luiited  and  should  enjoy 
peace  and  harmony."  The  mere  propounding 
of  such  a  self-evident  fact  was  sufficiently 
childish  and  absurd.  And  yet  one  might  have 
excused  the  disputants  on  the  plea  that  the 
question  offered  them  an  opportunity  for  dis- 
playing their  skill  as  logicians  and  their  powers 
of  debate.  After  countless  arguments  had  been 
exchanged,  however,  he  who  was  considered 
the  sagest  among  them,  closed  the  discussion 
with  this  venomous  statement:  "That  such  a 
consummation  would  be  by  no  means  advan- 
tageous!" And  this  decision,  forsooth,  was 
received  with  great  applause  and  with  general 
approbation.^ 

The  next  time  thou  addressest  the  Roman 
people,  0  ruler,  I  beg  of  thee  (who  art  endowed 
with  such  wonderful  eloquence)  to  acquaint 
them  with  this  occurrence,  and  to  do  so  in  my 
very  words.  Let  them  know  what  opinions 
these  high  and  mighty  nobles  entertain  con- 
cerning our  safety.  Such  sentiments  can  do  us 
no  harm,  of  course;  nevertheless  their  inflated 


156     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

talkativeness  betrays  their  innermost  feelings. 
That  fate  which  they  wish  for  us,  they  long  for 
so  ardently  that  they  cannot  repress  them- 
selves. In  their  shameful  bUndness  and  poverty 
of  intellect,  they  greedily  throw  their  hostile 
vows  and  prayers  into  the  form  of  scholarly 
disquisitions.  But  they  will  perish  in  their 
error.  We  are  in  the  hands  of  God,  and  shall 
endure,  not  the  fate  which  they  desire  for  us, 
but  that  which  God  himself  has  ordained. 

I  was  not  present  at  this  dehrious  session.  I 
should,  perchance,  have  saddened  the  joy  of 
some  of  those  gentlemen,  for  it  would  have  been 
neither  honorable  nor  possible  for  me  to  keep 
my  peace  in  the  midst  of  such  irreverent 
prating.  As  soon  as  the  news  reached  me, 
however,  I  waxed  wroth  with  indignation. 
With  what  little  authority  I  possess,  I  rendered 
the  opposite  decision  to  my  friends,  as  I  now  do 
to  thee,  the  defender  of  our  hberty.  I  beg  of 
thee  before  all  others,  O  ruler,  in  the  name  of  all 
the  angelic  hosts  do  I  humbly  beseech  thee,  and 
the  Roman  people,  and  all  Italy,  that  ye  con- 
firm by  deeds  that  which  I  have  simply  asserted. 
Mayest  thou  live  long  and  prosperously,  and 
mayest  thou  govern  with  success  that  RepubHc 
whose  freedom  thou  hast  so  bravely  restored. 


PETRARCA  HEARS  FROM  AVIGNON       157 

NOTES 

I.  Exactly  three  years  later,  this  incident  was 
referred  to  by  Cola  di  Rienzo  himself.  It  was  during 
the  summer  of  1350,  when,  after  having  lived  in  disguise 
on  Monte  Maiella  for  many  months,  he  had  betaken 
himself  to  Prague,  the  capital  city  of  the  Bohemian 
emperor-king  Charles  IV.  That  month  of  August 
proved  to  be  a  very  busy  one  for  Cola.  His  letters, 
very  lengthy  and  detailed,  follow  one  another  in  rapid 
succession.  The  series  begins  with  a  long  biographical 
letter  addressed  to  the  Emperor;  the  next  letter 
(likewise  to  the  Emperor)  answers  the  objections  raised 
by  the  ICing,  and  explains  prophecies  that  call  upon 
the  King  to  be  the  savior  of  Italy.  Then  follow  two 
letters  to  Johann  von  Neumark,  Chancellor  of  the 
Empire;  and,  finally,  the  letter  from  which  we  shall 
quote. 

It  is  addressed  to  Amest  von  Parbubitz,  Archbishop 
of  Prague  {Epistolario,  No.  XXXV,  pp.  144-79).  It  is 
dated  Prague,  August,  1350;  and  Papencordt,  relying 
upon  an  inferior  manuscript,  gives  August  15,  1350 
{Epistolario,  p.  144,  n.  2;  Papencordt,  Docimient  on 
p.  xlii).  In  the  course  of  a  lengthy  account  of  his 
tribunate.  Cola  defends  his  actions  and  position  as 
against  those  of  the  church.  We  cite  this  passage  in  its 
entirety  {Epistolario,  No.  XXXV,  11.  254-302): 

"Therefore,  keeping  the  Crucifix  of  Charity  before 
your  eyes,  which  of  the  following  two  will  your  paternity 
consider  the  defender  of  the  Church:  him  who,  when 
the  sheep  are  abandoned,  yea  afficted,  admits  and 
fosters  the  wolves;  or  him  who  leads  back  and  gathers 


158      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

together  into  one  fold  the  sheep  scattered  because  of 
discord,  and  who,  in  defense  of  those  same  sheep, 
gladly  exposes  himself  to  the  wolves  and  to  death? 
Who  will  be  the  real  schismatic:  he  who  plants  the 
seeds  of  disunion  in  the  church  of  God,  or  he  who 
removes  them  ? 

"Did  I  not,  with  God's  help,  overthrow  the  errors  of 
sinners?  In  spite  of  the  rivalry  among  the  Romans, 
whose  deadly  partisanship  was  found  to  have  spread  to 
the  considerable  number  of  eighteen  hundred  men,  did 
I  not  cause  them  to  cease  their  bloodshed,  and  to  lay 
aside  all  thoughts  of  offenses  and  wrongs  among  them  ? 
Did  I  not,  contrary  to  the  expectation  of  mankind, 
lead  them  to  a  sincere  peace  ?  Did  I  not  restore  true 
peace  among  all  the  hostile  cities  ?  Did  I  not  decree 
that  all  those  citizens,  who  were  living  in  exile  from 
their  native  cities  on  account  of  party  strife,  should  be 
led  back  together  with  their  poor  wives  and  children  ? 
Had  I  not  begim  to  stamp  out  completely  the  dis- 
uniting names  of  Ghibelline  and  Guelph  parties,  in 
whose  defense  coimtless  thousands  of  souls  and  bodies 
perished  under  the  very  eyes  of  their  shepherds  ?  Had 
I  not  begun  to  bring  this  to  pass  by  welding  the  city  of 
Rome  and  the  whole  of  Italy  into  a  single,  harmonious, 
peaceful,  holy,  and  indissoluble  union?  by  collecting 
and  consigning  to  the  different  cities  the  consecrated 
standards  and  banners?  and,  in  token  of  our  holy 
alliance  and  perfect  union,  by  bestowing  with  due 
solemnity  upon  the  ambassadors  of  all  the  Italian  cities 
gold  rings  that  had  been  consecrated  on  the  day  of  the 
Assumption  of  our  Most  Blessed  Lady  ? 

"This  union,  like  all  other  matters,  was  accom- 
plished in  the  presence  and  with  the  approval  of  him 
who  was  then  the  vicar  of  the  Pope.  And  yet  our  lord 
the  Supreme  Pontiff,  owing  to  the  insinuations  of 
wicked  men  and  to  his  own  lack  of  charity,  regarded 
this  union  with  such  great  suspicion  that  the  following 


PETRARCA  HEARS  FROM  AVIGNON       159 

theme  was  discussed  in  the  Consistory  itself,  'Whether 
the  Union  of  Rome  and  of  Italy  were  advantageous  to 
the  Roman  Church'!  Hearken,  O  Father,  to  the 
theme  of  the  separatists,  yea  of  Satan  himself,  and  a 
theme  loathsome  both  to  God  and  to  angels.  They 
brought  into  question,  forsooth,  whether  the  cutting- 
oflf  of  sinners  and  the  creation  of  a  union  were  of 
advantage  to  the  believers  in  Christ,  and  whether  the 
soundness  of  the  flock  were  of  benefit  to  the  shepherd! 

"Of  a  surety,  so  long  as  that  union  flourished, 
tyrants  trembled,  and  the  peoples,  like  imto  lambs, 
gamboled  in  the  pasture-lands.  Safety  and  peace 
reigned  supreme  in  every  direction.  The  moment  that 
that  union  was  dissolved  because  of  my  absence,  all 
things  fell  again  beneath  the  foot  of  the  tyrant.  Every- 
where wars,  attacks,  invasions.  With  the  destruction 
of  souls  and  the  butchering  of  bodies,  disimion  again 
raised  its  head.  But  in  the  Consistory  there  was  no 
debating  now  on  the  question  whether  or  not  the 
renewal  of  such  scandalous  deeds  brought  detriment  to 
the  Roman  church. 

"Indeed,  it  appears  to  them  that  the  church,  that  is 
to  say  that  the  wealth  of  the  cardinals,  is  increased  by 
the  dissensions  of  cities.  In  truth,  the  cardinals 
consider  their  Consistory  and  the  entire  church  as  one 
and  the  same  thing.  For,  if  the  cities  be  divided  by 
discord  and  by  wars,  each  visits  the  Supreme  Pontiff 
and  the  cardinals  with  gold  in  its  hands,  whereby  to 
curry  favor.  If  on  the  contrary,  the  cities  repose 
peaceful  and  united,  there  is  no  necessity  of  their 
paying  visits  of  this  kind.  Hence  let  there  be  discord 
everywhere,  that  the  shepherds  of  the  church  may 
receive  visitations.  Let  disease  come,  that  convenient 
recourse  may  be  had  to  the  healer — and  would  that  it 
were  to  a  healer  and  not  to  a  leech!  Let  the  wolves 
be  called,  that  the  sheep  may  have  their  necessary 
shepherd,  and  that  they  may  fear  him  the  more.    Ah 


i6o      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

charity,  rejected,  condemned,  slain,  aye  and  buried 
too!  Arise  for  a  moment,  for  our  one  Lord  hath 
arisen,  who  was  condemned  and  buried  together  with 
thee!" 

Petrarca  comments  on  the  theme  which  was  thus 
debated  in  the  Consistory  that  "The  mere  propound- 
ing of  such  a  self-evident  fact  was  sufl5ciently  childish 
and  absurd."  And  Gregorovius  muses  (VI,  271,  n.  i): 
"What  would  he  say,  did  he  know  that  even  now  [in 
1866]  the  subject  is  discussed  throughout  the  whole 
world?"  But  later  on  in  the  same  volume  (p.  293,  n. 
i),  the  historian  of  mediaeval  Rome  adds:  "This  [i.e., 
Cola's  welding  of  a  United  Italy;   v.s.]   sounds  quite 

modem,  nevertheless  they  are  Cola's  words 

This  is  the  cry  'Italia  una!'  which  was  raised  by  Cola 
for  the  first  time.  It  re-echoed  for  centuries,  until  in 
our  own  days  it  filled  Italy  with  feverish  enthusiasm, 
and  in  1870  Cola's  inspired  dream  became  a  reality." 

We  may  add  that  the  Third  Italy  has  answered  once 
and  for  all  the  doubts  of  the  French  Pope  and  of  the 
French  cardinals  in  Consistory  assembled.  And,  to 
bring  the  remarks  of  Gregorovius  up  to  date,  we  shall 
conclude  by  saying  that  in  this  year — the  nineteen 
hundred  and  eleventh  of  our  Lord,  and  the  two  thou- 
sand six  hundred  and  sixty-fourth  of  the  City — the 
Italian  nation  is  celebrating  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of 
the  proclamation  of  that  single,  harmonious,  peaceful, 
holy,  and  indissoluble  Union  conceived  both  by  Cola 
di  Rienzo  and  by  Petrarca. 


CHAPTER  X 

Events  at  Rome  moved  rapidly  after  Cola's 
coronation.  The  struggle  against  the  barons 
(the  Gaetani  in  particular)  continued  as  bitterly 
as  before.  At  last  Cola,  in  a  desperate  attempt 
to  stamp  out  all  opposition,  invited  the  barons 
to  a  sumptuous  banquet  on  the  Campidoglio, 
at  the  end  of  which  he  treacherously  imprisoned 
them  (September  14).  On  the  following  day, 
however,  Cola,  preaching  on  the  text  "Forgive 
us  our  trespasses,"  pardoned  them  all,  invested 
them  with  high  offices,  and,  two  days  later, 
received  communion  with  them  at  the  Church 
of  S.  Maria  in  Aracoeli.  On  the  very  same  day 
(September  17),  Cola  wrote  to  the  papal 
notary  Rinaldo  Orsini,  giving  him  a  full  account 
of  these  occurrences,  as  well  as  defending  him- 
self against  the  charges  of  having  taken  the 
Bath  of  Knighthood  in  the  basin  consecrated  by 
Constantine's  conversion;  of  having  helped  to 
desecrate  the  marble  pontifical  table  in  the 
course  of  the  banquet  at  the  Lateran  (August 
i) ;  and,  finally,  of  having  acted  in  a  generally 
childlike  manner  (Epistolario,  No.  XXIII). 

The  actions  of  Cola  were,  we  grant,  open  to 
161 


i62     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

criticism.  The  difficulties  with  which  he  was 
beset  made  him  every  day  more  and  more 
inconsistent  and  capricious.  When  he  reaHzed 
that  he  could  not  overcome  each  and  every 
obstacle  that  presented  itself  with  the  same 
ease  as  in  the  early  days  of  his  power,  he  became 
increasingly  irritable.  In  the  months  from 
May  to  September  the  close,  compact  body  of 
the  barons  had  had  ample  time  to  form  a  well- 
organized  opposition  to  the  Tribune;  and  the 
same  flight  of  time  had  made  serious  inroads 
into  the  number  of  the  Tribune's  loyal  friends. 
But  what  effect  did  Cola's  actions  have  upon 
his  optimistic  champion  at  Vaucliise  ? 

We  shaU  see  in  the  course  of  this  volume  that 
Petrarca  considered  Cola's  hberation  of  the 
barons  a  most  serious  error.  Examples  of 
wholesale  murderers — such  as  Ezzelino  da 
Romano — were  not  lacking;  and  had  Cola  been 
endowed  with  the  quahties  of  a  real  tyrant,  he 
would  have  committed  the  deed  which  everyone 
(in  accordance  with  the  standards  of  that  age) 
expected  him  to  commit  under  the  circum- 
stances. But  by  September  ii  Petrarca  had 
not  yet  heard  of  these  matters.  There  were 
other  causes  to  disturb  his  delicately  strung 
nature.    It  will  be  remembered  that  the  affairs 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA      163 

of  Queen  Giovanna's  kingdom  of  Naples  were  in 
anything  but  a  reassuring  condition  (see  above, 
letter  Var.,  XL VIII,  n.  14).  Rumors  of  the 
threatened  invasion  of  Italy  by  Louis  I  the 
Great,  king  of  Hungary,  began  to  spread  far 
and  wide.  Petrarca  recognized  in  this  calamity 
an  atoning  for  the  assassination  of  King  Andrew 
of  Naples.  StiU,  he  could  not  calmly  behold 
the  punishing  of  an  innocent  population,  and 
the  treading  of  barbaric  hosts  upon  the  sacred 
Italic  soil.  In  a  letter  addressed  to  Marco 
Barbato,  whose  native  city  of  Solmona  was  in 
the  war-distracted  region,  Petrarca  affirms  his 
sense  of  security  for  the  rest  of  Italy.  He  says 
(Frac,  I,  p.  355, 1.  i): 

But  far  be  it  from  me  to  entertain  fears  for  Italy. 
Her  enemies,  rather,  will  have  cause  to  fear,  provided 
the  tribunician  power  recently  restored  to  the  City 
continue  in  a  vigorous  and  flourishing  condition,  and 
provided  Rome,  our  fountain-head,  become  not  ill  and 
sicken.  Another  portion  of  Italy,  however,  makes  me 
uneasy — that  which  once  was  called  Magna  Graecia, 
including  the  modern  Abruzzi,  Calabria,  Puglia,  the 
Terra  di  Lavoro,  Capua  once  so  powerful,  and  Par- 
thenope,  the  present  queen  of  cities. 

Petrarca's  thoughts  of  the  army  from  the 
North  sweeping  down  like  a  sidlen  cloud  into 
the  smiling  skies  of  Italy,  and  particularly  upon 


i64     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Solmona,  cause  a  natural  transition  to  an 
expression  of  anxiety  for  Barbato's  personal 
safety  (Frac,  I,  pp.  356  to  end) : 

I  am  racked  by  my  great  fears  for  thee ;  but,  as  far 
as  I  am  aware,  I  am  helpless  either  to  advise  or  to  assist. 
Still,  since  some  men  can  now  and  then  accomplish 
more  than  they  hope  to  accomplish,  exercise  thy  rights 
of  a  friend  if  thou  canst  see  any  way  in  which  I  may  be 
of  service  to  thee.  I  confess  that  I  have  no  slight 
influence  with  the  Tribune,  a  man  of  lowly  origin  but 
of  high  mind  and  purpose;  and  likewise  have  I  influence 
with  the  Roman  people.  But  it  is  due  to  no  merits  of 
mine.  God  has  compensated  the  hatred  of  the  wicked 
for  me  with  the  love  of  the  good,  not  because  I  have 
injured  the  former  or  have  benefited  the  latter,  or 
because  I  have  ceased  to  err  and  am  now  an  upright 
man,  but  simply  because  it  has  ever  been  my  disposition 
to  hate  the  wicked  and  to  love  the  good.  I  have 
frequently  desired  to  flee  from  the  horde  of  the  former 
to  the  handful  of  the  latter,  if  the  opportunity  had  only 
presented  itself;  and  I  still  so  desire,  if  the  oppor- 
tunity now  present  itself.  If  at  the  present  crisis, 
therefore,  my  intervention  with  the  above-mentioned 
Tribune  and  people  can  profit  thee,  behold!  both  my 
mind  and  my  pen  are  at  thy  service. 

In  addition,  I  possess  a  home  in  Italy,  in  a  region  far 
distant  [from  the  kingdom  of  Naples]  and  safe  against 
the  present  disturbances  [sc,  his  home  at  Parma].  It 
is  a  small  home,  to  be  sure,  but  no  home  is  too  small  for 
two  beings  with  but  a  single  heart.     It  is  not  inhabited 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA      165 

by  pernicious  wealth,  nor  by  poverty,  nor  by  greed, 
but  indeed  by  countless  books.  This  home  is  now 
waiting  for  us:  for  me,  who  am  about  to  return  from 
the  West,  and  whom  she  complains  of  for  my  absence 
of  two  years;  for  thee,  who  art  to  come  from  the  East, 
if  the  fates  so  compel  thee,  or  if  thy  pleasure  so  will.  I 
have  nothing  to  offer  thee  but  this.  Thou  knowest 
where  the  home  to  which  I  invite  thee  is  situated — in  a 
healthful  spot,  free  from  terrors,  full  of  joys,  and 
suitable  to  quiet  study.  May  God  bring  to  a  happy 
issue  whatever  thou  decidest  upon.  I  trust  that  in  the 
meantime  I  may  have  been  entertaining  false  fears, 
and  that  absence,  according  to  its  wont,  has  increased 
the  terrors  of  the  lover.  Indeed,  my  soul  will  not  be 
at  peace  until  I  see  thee,  or  until  I  receive  news  by 
letter  that  thou  hast  survived  the  tempest  safe  and 
sound.    Farewell. 

This  letter  must  have  reached  Barbato  in  the 
early  days  of  October — ^if  it  reached  him  at  all, 
owing  to  the  imsettled  condition  of  the  country. 
Solmona,  in  fact,  was  captured  by  the  Hun- 
garian soldiers  on  October  20.  Said  letter, 
however,  is  important  for  our  purpose,  in  that 
it  contains  the  first  hint  of  Petrarca's  leaving 
France — and  the  reason  given  is  merely  that  of 
a  desire  to  revisit  his  beloved  Italy  after  an 
absence  of  two  years.  What  Petrarca  did,  or 
thought,  during  the  weeks  that  followed  Sep- 
tember II  it  is  impossible  to  know.    There  is  a 


i66     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

dearth  of  material  for  this  interesting  period. 
It  is  quite  certain,  however,  that  the  contents  of 
Cola's  letter  of  October  ii  must  have  become 
known  to  him  by  the  beginning  of  November. 
An  examination  of  this  letter  reveals  some  facts 
that  will  aid  us  in  reconstructing  their  effect 
upon  Petrarca's  feehngs. 

The  letter  in  question  is  addressed  to  Clement 
VI  {Epistolario,  No.  XXV,  October  ii,  1347). 
It  begins  with  remonstrances  on  the  part  of  Cola 
because  the  Pope  had  instituted  proceedings 
against  him.  Cola  presents  a  defense  based 
upon  three  chief  arguments:  the  first,  that  the 
Pope  should  not  rashly  give  heed  to  mere 
slanderous  rumors  that  had  been  spread  con- 
cerning him;  the  second,  that  all  his  deeds  had 
been  performed  in  behalf  of  the  Roman  people. 
The  third  part  of  his  defense  we  shall  cite  in 
full  {op.  ciL,  p.  73,  U.  53H5o)  : 

Thirdly:  seeing  that  I  consider  whatever  is  pleasing 
and  agreeable  to  your  Holiness  as  sacred  and  just, 
whenever  it  please  your  Holiness  that  I  be  removed 
from  said  office,  I  am  prepared  to  surrender  my  power, 
being  resolved  never  to  act  contrary  to  your  wishes. 
And  to  accomplish  this  end,  it  is  not  necessary  to 
belabor  the  Curia  and  to  make  the  whole  world  resound 
with  the  thunder  of  your  accusations.  Indeed,  the 
least  of  your  couriers  would  have  sufficed,  arid  will  still 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  167 

suffice,  whenever  it  so  please  you.  For  God  is  greater 
than  man,  and  you  are  greater  than  the  kings  and  the 
princes  of  earth. 

We  can  imagine  the  amazement  of  Petrarca 
on  becoming  acquainted  with  this.  He  may 
well  have  considered  it  in  the  nature  of  a 
rapprochement  with  the  Curia.  This  calm 
surrender  of  Cola's  power  which  it  had  cost  so 
much  toil  to  estabHsh,  and  from  which  Petrarca 
had  hoped  the  pacification  and  the  regenera- 
tion of  Italy,  must  have  disturbed  him  in  no 
sHght  degree.  He  must  have  begun  to  lose  his 
confidence  in  Cola,  and  to  see  the  not-distant 
melting  away  of  his  fairy  castles.  But  there 
was  still  worse  in  that  evil  letter. 

Cola  informs  the  Pope  that  he  had  received 
an  embassy  from  the  king  of  Hungary,  who 
made  three  requests:  the  first,  that  the  mur- 
derers of  his  brother  King  Andrew  be  visited 
with  due  punishment;  the  second,  that  Cola 
and  the  Roman  people  should  ally  themselves 
with  the  Hungarians;  the  third,  that  Cola 
permit  the  Hungarian  king  and  his  army  to 
enter  the  city  of  Rome  {op.  ciL,  p.  76).  Cola 
furthermore  informs  the  Pope  categorically  of 
his  answers  to  these  requests:  that  justice 
would  smrely  never  be  denied  to  anyone  seeking 


l68     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

it;  that  he  did  not  refuse  the  king's  friendship, 
but  that  he  neither  wished,  nor  could,  enter  upon 
an  alliance  without  the  Pope's  knowledge  and 
consent  thereto,  and  without  consulting  other 
friendly  princes  and  states,  to  whom  (he  adds) 
he  had  sent  a  special  embassy  {op.  cit.,  p.  77). 
Such  news  undoubtedly  caused  Petrarca 
greater  imeasiness  than  the  earHer  portion  of  the 
letter.  For  here  we  have  Cola  treating  with  the 
foreigner.  We  have  him  threatening  to  harbor 
the  barbaric  hosts  within  the  City  of  Petrarca's 
dreams.  Indeed,  Cola  adds  to  his  answers  the 
statement  that  the  hostUe  attitude  of  the  Pope's 
Rectors  in  Campania  and  in  the  Patrimony  will 
very  likely  force  him  into  an  alliance  with  the 
king,  though  such  action  would  be  quite  con- 
trary to  his  own  wishes.  Here  was  the  repeti- 
tion of  the  error  of  centuries:  the  everlasting 
summoning  of  the  outsider  to  decide  petty, 
internal  dissensions.  Here  were  new  wounds 
about  to  be  inflicted  upon  the  beautiful  form  of 
Italy;  new  incursions;  new  appeals  to  the 
swords  of  the  stranger;  renewed  drenching  of 
Italic  soil  with  the  blood  of  the  barbarian;  the 
desecration  of  the  nest  wherein  Petrarca  had 
been  born,  of  the  pious  and  benign  mother  that 
held  the  graves  of  his  parents. 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  169 

By  the  beginning  of  November,  therefore, 
Petrarca  had  fully  decided  upon  going  to  Italy. 
Cola's  wavering  and  the  possible  estabHshment 
of  the  supremacy  of  the  foreigner  throughout 
Italy,  made  it  imperative  for  him  to  join  Cola, 
in  order  that  he  might  advise  the  Tribune,  or 
prince  of  the  Romans;  that  he  might  perform 
his  duty  as  a  Roman  citizen  and  thus  aid  to 
steady  the  tempest-tossed  bark. 

This  was  undoubtedly  the  chief  motive  of 
Petrarca's  departure.  But  of  course  there  were 
many  minor  incentives.  In  his  letter  to 
Barbato,  Petrarca,  as  we  have  seen,  invites  his 
friend  to  go  and  hve  with  him  at  his  small  home 
at  Parma.  The  choice  of  this  abode  was  not  as 
haphazard  a  one  as  the  reader  may  be  inclined 
to  suppose.  The  deciding  factors  in  this  choice 
were  two:  the  fact  that  he  wished  to  enter  upon 
the  actual  possession  of  the  canonry  at  Parma 
bestowed  upon  him  in  the  October  of  the  pre- 
ceding year;  and  the  fact  that  he  had  received  a 
hearty  invitation  from  Azzo  da  Correggio,  Lord 
of  Parma,  to  become  a  resident  and  an  adorn- 
ment of  this  court.  Petrarca  has  left  to  us  a 
description  of  his  leave-taking  from  Cardinal 
Giovanni  Colonna  (Eclogue  8).  In  answer  to 
the  cardinal's  surprise  that  he  should  leave  just 


lyo     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA^DI  RIENZO 

at  this  juncture,  after  so  many  years'passed  in 
intimate  friendship,  Petrarca  answers  that 
hitherto  he  had  been  held  captive  by  pernicious 
habit,  by  his  love  for  the  cardinal  himself 
(which,  he  declares,  will  never  abate),  and  by 
the  presence  of  a  charming  and  enticing 
maiden  (see  Avena,  Eclogue  8,  vss.  73-75). 
But  wandering  one  day  among  the  hills,  he 
chanced  to  meet  a  shepherd  named  Gillias  (Azzo 
da  Correggio,  cf,  op.  ciL,  vs.  50),  who  led  him 
to  the  topmost  ridge  of  the  mountain,  and 
pointed  out  to  him  the  smiling  plains  of  Italy 
on  the  other  side.  But  it  is  best  to  hear  what 
followed  in  Petrarca's  own  words  (op.  cit.,  vss. 
52-60): 

I  step  forward,  and  I  behold  new  valleys  and  fertile 
fields  stretching  far  and  wide;  but,  frequently  turning 
my  eyes  back  to  my  wonted  fields,  the  lands  on  this 
side  of  the  mountain  begin  to  seem  despicable  to  me, 
the  Western  sky  misty  and  stormy,  and  the  stars 
themselves  melancholy.  At  once  I  recognize  the 
strong  love  of  country  calling  aloud  within  me.  On 
the  farther  side  of  the  mountain  the  violets,  moistened 
with  dew,  are  of  a  paler  tint  of  yellow;  the  roses  emit  a 
sweeter  scent  from  the  thickets,  and  grow  to  a  deeper 
red;  there,  a  more  limpid  stream — the  stream  of  my 
fathers — flows  through  the  meadows;  and  the  crops  of 
Ausonia  have  for  me  now  a  sweeter  taste. 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA      171 

The  causes  of  Petrarca's  leaving  France, 
therefore,  may  here  be  summarized:  the  first 
and  foremost,  his  desire  to  be  with,  or  near, 
Cola  in  case  of  emergency;  the  second,  his  desire 
to  accede  to  the  invitation  of  Azzo  da  Correggio, 
who  had  become  more  and  more  insistent  (cf. 
Eclogue  8,  vss.  106-7);  ^^^  the  third,  his  love 
for  his  native  country,  which,  after  all,  is  the 
feeling  predominantly  pervading  all  other 
motives. 

As  is  usual  when  one  leaves  for  foreign  parts, 
Petrarca's  friends  began  to  importime  him  with 
the  executing  of  commissions.  A  letter  to 
Giovanni,  bishop  of  the  Tricastrine  diocese  (cf . 
Mehus,  p.  ccxvi)  and  Hbrarian  of  the  Avignon 
Library  under  Clement  VI,  gives  us  a  clear 
picture  of  the  still  friendly  relations  existing 
between  Petrarca  and  the  authorities  of  the 
church.  The  letter  {Fam.,  VII,  4,  Frac,  I,  pp. 
366-67)  bears  no  date,  but  is  clearly  of  this 
period,  as  is  proved  by  the  opening  sentence. 

I  have  forgotten  neither  thy  request  nor  my  promise, 
and  I  am  about  to  return  to  Italy — or,  perhaps,  I  had 
better  say  into  Italy,  if  I  do  not  wish  to  become  involved 
in  a  grammatical  discussion  such  as  Atticus  carried  on 
in  his  correspondence  with  Cicero.  I  well  remember,  I 
assure  thee,  what  thou  hast  so  often  asked  of  me  in 


172     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

regard  to  collecting  the  various  works  of  that  same 
Cicero,  arranging  them  in  their  proper  order,  and 
annotating  them  with  my  illuminating  remarks,  as 
thou  art  wont  to  say.  The  Roman  Pontiff,  aware  of 
thy  great  love  for  books,  has  generously  intrusted  to 
thee  an  office  worthy  of  thy  talents — the  care  of  his 
library,  thus  following  the  example  set  of  yore  by  our 
emperors.  For  it  is  common  knowledge  that  Julius 
Caesar  gave  a  similar  appointment  to  Marcus  Varro, 
and  Augustus  Caesar  to  Pompeius  Macer,  and  the 
Egyptian  king,  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  to  Demetrius 
Phalereus.  I  well  remember,  I  repeat,  how  thou,  to 
make  thy  entreaty  more  than  ever  irresistible,  didst 
maneuver  in  such  wise  that  the  Pope  very  discreetly 
made  known  to  me,  on  my  leave-taking,  his  similar 
wishes  in  the  matter.  What  was  I  to  do?  Though 
the  poet  be  unknown,  familiar  are  these  words  of  his: 
"The  requests  of  princes  are  as  the  scowling  face  of  a 
commander;  and  those  in  power  beseech  as  if  with 
drawn  sword."  And  so  I  shall  obey,  if  I  can.  For  it  is 
necessary  that  I  should;  and  then,  too,  I  delight  to 
think  that  I  can  give  thee  pleasure.  Moreover,  to 
spurn  thy  entreaties  would  be  unfeeling  in  me;  whereas 
to  disobey  his  commands  would  be  sacrilegious. 

The  success  of  my  undertaking,  however,  hinges  on 
this  point,  in  how  far  fortune  will  smile  upon  me  in 
discovering  those  carefully  emended  manuscripts 
which  both  of  you  are  so  eager  to  acquire.  Thou  art 
well  acquainted  with  the  crime  of  our  age.  Thou 
knowest,  therefore,  how  great  is  the  scarcity  of  such 
manuscripts,  but  with  what  care  and  toil,  on  the  con- 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA      173 

trary,  dangerous  and  destructive  wealth  is  amassed, 
even  though  it  avails  not  and  though  it  already 
abounds.  Whatever  power  and  energy  I  may  possess 
I  shall  exert  tirelessly,  and  moreover  I  shall  employ 
the  greatest  care.  And  that  thou  mayest  not  accuse 
me  of  having  delayed,  know  that  I  have  lingered  in  my 
retreat  at  the  Fountain  of  the  Sorgue  awaiting  the 
more  temperate  days  of  autumn,  in  order  to  regain  the 
health  which  my  illness  has  impaired.  I  have  hesitated 
to  submit  my  still  weak  health  to  the  ordeal  of  a  long 
journey.  Now  that,  with  the  help  of  God,  my 
strength  has  returned  and  the  excessive  heat  has  come 
to  an  end,  I  shall  take  the  road.  Would  that  thou 
couldst  experience,  in  the  meanwhile,  the  pleasure  with 
which  I  roam  alone  and  free  from  care  through  the 
hills  and  groves;  how  freely  I  breathe  in  the  midst  of 
springs  and  of  rivulets,  in  the  company  of  my  books 
and  of  the  thoughts  of  the  greatest  men;  and  how, 
endeavoring  to  forget  the  past,  and  to  ignore  the 
present,  even  as  the  apostle  I  direct  my  mind  to  that 
life  which  still  awaits  me.     Farewell. 

Several  facts  result  from  this  letter.  The 
most  important  (as  we  have  already  pointed 
out)  is  the  friendship  with  which  Petrarca  was 
still  regarded  at  the  papal  court,  notwithstand- 
ing his  clearly  reiterated  sympathy  with  the 
Tribune.  We  do  not  hesitate  to  attribute  this 
friendship  to  his  pre-eminent  position  in  the 
world    of    letters.     Unfortimately,    Petrarca's 


174     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

ideas  in  political  matters  were  regarded  as  the 
wild,  impractical  dreams  of  a  poet  and  scholar. 
They  were  good-naturedly  tolerated  whether  at 
papal  Avignon  or  at  imperial  Prague.  For  the 
same  reason,  his  fiery  outbursts  at  poHtical 
conditions  did  not  weaken  his  prestige  as  a 
scholar,  nor  lessen  the  desires  of  potentates  to 
attract  him  to  their  courts  and  to  employ  him 
on  various  missions  of  diplomacy.  Conse- 
quently, when  Petrarca  had  made  known  his 
resolution  to  depart  for  Italy,  he  felt  in  duty 
bound  to  take  formal  leave  of  the  Pope.  This 
visit  we  would  date  in  the  first  few  days  of 
November.  From  the  letter  just  cited  it  is 
furthermore  clear  that  the  Hbrarian  Giovanni 
had  already  requested  Petrarca  to  do  him  the 
favoi:  mentioned,  and  had  enlisted  also  the 
specific  assistance  of  Clement  VI.  After  this 
visit,  it  would  seem  that  Petrarca  returned  to 
Vaucluse  to  make  the  final  preparations  for  his 
journey.  But  he  was  obhged  to  postpone  his 
departure  because  of  ill  health.  Supposing, 
therefore,  that  the  hbrarian  must  have  been 
impatient  to  hear  of  his  actual  departure, 
Petrarca  wrote  to  him  the  above  letter  of 
explanation. 
We  here  assume  that  the  Hbrarian  forthwith 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  175 

informed  the  Pope  of  the  fact  that  Petrarca  had 
not  yet  left  Vaucluse.  On  his  visit  of  leave- 
taking,  and  in  answer  to  some  questioning  as  to 
his  plans  in  Italy,  Petrarca  may  very  well  have 
communicated  to  the  Pope  that  he  intended, 
after  arriving  at  Parma,  to  visit  his  ten-year-old 
son  Giovanni,  whom  he  had  left  at  Verona  in 
1345,  under  the  tuition  and  the  care  of  the 
grammarian  Rinaldo  da  ViUafranca.  Remem- 
bering this,  and  taking  advantage  of  the  week's 
delay  on  the  part  of  Petrarca,  Clement  VI 
decided  to  enhst  the  services  of  the  poet  in  the 
capacity  of  ambassador,  and  furnished  him 
with  the  following  letter  to  the  ruler  of  Verona 
(see  CipoUa,  Giornale  storico,  XL VII,  256-57): 

To  our  beloved  Mastino  della  Scala,  faithful  and 
devoted  son  of  the  Church  of  Rome. 

We  render  to  thy  nobility  due  thanks  for  those  acts 
which  thou  hast  performed  in  the  service  and  to  the 
advantage  of  our  very  dear  son  in  Christ,  the  illustrious 
Charles,  king  of  the  Romans.  The  affairs  of  said  king 
are  particularly  close  to  our  heart,  and  the  Bavarian — 
that  inveterate  enemy  of  the  evil  days  gone  by — has 
now  been  removed  from  our  midst.  Since,  therefore, 
we  can  now  hope  that,  with  the  aid  of  God,  the  affairs 
of  said  king  may  be  rendered  fortunate  and  prosperous, 
we  earnestly  beg  thy  nobility  to  be  sure  to  continue 
industriously,  loyally,  and  zealously  that  which  thou 


176     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

hast  so  worthily  begun  in  behalf  of  the  respect  due  to 
thyself,  of  the  reverence  due  to  the  apostolic  see,  and 
of  the  maintenance  of  thine  own  power. 

Indeed,  thou  must  have  heard  that  our  very  beloved 
son  in  Christ,  the  illustrious  Louis,  king  of  Hungary, 
desires  to  invade  the  kingdom  of  Sicily.  So  rumor  has 
it.  Since,  however,  said  kingdom  is  within  the  juris- 
diction and  the  possessions  of  the  Church  of  Rome; 
and  since  any  hardships  inflicted  upon  it  would,  not 
without  reason,  be  a  source  of  disturbance  to  us  also, 
we  add  to  our  former  prayers  the  further  request  that 
thou  mayest  manage  to  put  obstacles  in  the  way  of  all 
who  are  advancing  to  the  invasion  and  occupation  of 
said  kingdom;  and,  also,  that  thou  mayest  not  grant 
to  those  thus  inclined  permission  to  cross  through  that 
territory  which  is  under  thy  control.  With  reference 
to  these  matters,  kindly  give  credence  to,  and  put  into 
grateful  and  pleasing  execution,  that  which  our  beloved 
son  Maestro  Francesco  Petrarca,  Florentine  clergyman,, 
will  communicate  to  thee  in  our  behalf. 

Given  at  Avignon,  on  the  13th  of  November,  and  in 
the  sixth  year  [of  our  pontificate]. 

This  letter,  therefore,  is  practically  Petrarca's 
ambassadorial  portfolio  to  the  court  of  the 
Scaligers.  It  recommended  him,  so  to  speak,  as 
persona  grata  to  Mastino  della  Scala,  who 
enjoyed  also  the  title  of  Papal  Vicar.  The 
letter,  furthermore,  is  clear  evidence  of  the 
opposition  to  the  Hungarian  invasion  that  was 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  177 

being  organized  by  the  Pope,  and,  incidentally, 
of  the  answer  which  Clement  VI  would  have 
given  to  the  ambassadors  of  the  king  of  Hmigary 
had  they  gone  to  Avignon  instead  of  Rome. 
In  his  opposition  to  the  efforts  of  King  Louis, 
the  Pope  was  certain  of  enhsting  all  Petrarca's 
eloquence;  and  the  mission  thus  intrusted  to 
the  poet  may  have  been  a  shrewd  move  oh  the 
part  of  the  Avignonese  diplomacy  to  detach 
Petrarca  from  the  cause  of  Cola.  At  the  same 
time  the  Pope  sent  an  envoy  to  many  cities  of 
northern  Italy,  but  his  efforts  were  in  vain. 
Petrarca's  mission,  too,  was  doomed  to  failure; 
for  on  December  5,  the  gates  of  Verona  were 
thrown  open  to  welcome  the  invading  king. 

On  November  20,  precisely  one  week  after 
the  date  of  the  papal  letter,  Petrarca  finally 
started  for  Italy — the  fifth  return  to  the  land  of 
his  birth.  On  that  very  same  day.  Cola  was 
breaking  the  backbone  of  the  barons'  opposition, 
and  was  decimating  the  family  of  the  Colonna 
outside  the  Porta  S.  Lorenzo.  Petrarca's 
departure  was  inevitably  attended  with  sad 
regrets.  To  be  sure,  he  was  leaving  Avignon 
which  he  so  thoroughly  detested,  but  he  was 
leaving  also  his  beloved  Vaucluse.  And  then, 
in    spite    of    all    Petrarca's    thundering,    the 


178     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

western  Babylon  must  have  contained  within 
its  ramparts  the  ten  righteous  men  necessary 
to  ward  off  the  fires  of  heaven.  In  this  number 
of  the  elect  Petrarca  surely  placed  Cardinal 
Giovanni  Colonna,  whom  he  never  saw  again; 
and  his  dear  friend  Ludwig  von  Kempen 
(Socrates),  who  was  born  in  the  cold  North,  but 
whom  he  always  liked  to  think  of  as  an  Itahan; 
and  his  equally  beloved  friend  Lello  di  Pietro 
dei  Stefaneschi  (Laehus),  to  whom  he  addressed 
such  numerous  letters. 

In  fact,  Petrarca  received  a  farewell  letter 
from  Laehus  on  November  19 — the  eve  of  his 
departure.  On  November  22,  he  halted  his 
journey  long  enough  to  write  Fam.,  VII,  5,  in 
answer  to  it.  He  begins  the  letter  by  telling 
Laehus  that  he  has  already  spent  three  sleepless 
nights,  apparently  caused  by  the  contents  of 
Laehus'  letter.  He  then  assures  Laehus  that  he 
wiU  do  what  is  asked  of  him,  and  at  as  early  a 
date  as  possible.  After  adding  that  he  will 
finish  for  Laehus  the  composition  of  certain 
verses  already  begun,  he  concludes  with  the 
following  sad  remarks  (Frac,  I,  pp.  368-69) : 

I  have  received  the  letter  of  the  Tribune,  of  which 
thou  hast  inclosed  a  copy.  I  have  read  it,  and  I  have 
remained  aghast,    I  know  not  what  to  answer  thee.    I 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA      179 

clearly  perceive  the  ruin  of  my  country;  whithersoever 
I  turn,  I  discover  causes  and  fuel  for  grief.  For  when 
Rome  is  thus  mangled  and  mutilated,  what  will  be  the 
condition  of  Italy?  And  when  Italy  has  been  dis- 
figured, what  will  be  my  future  life?  In  this  public 
and  private  calamity,  some  will  contribute  their 
wealth,  others  their  bodily  strength,  others  their 
political  power,  and  still  others  words  of  advice.  As 
for  me,  I  do  not  see  what  else  I  can  offer  but  tears. 
Written  on  the  road,  on  the  2  2d  of  November. 

What  was  the  dreadful  letter  of  Cola,  a  copy 
of  which  Laelius  inclosed?  What  distressing 
news  did  it  contain  ?  We  cannot  answer  these 
questions  with  certainty.  The  news  may  have 
told  of  Cola's  attack  on  the  Orsini  intrenched  at 
Marino;  or  of  the  drowning  of  two  hounds  by 
Cola  which  the  Tribune  had  previously,  and  in 
mockery,  baptized  as  Rinaldo  and  Giordano 
Orsini;  or  of  the  puerile  visit  of  Cola  to  Cardinal 
Bertrand  de  Deux.  But  surely,  stronger  reasons 
were  Cola's  open  alliance  with  King  Louis  of 
Hungary,  and  the  contribution  by  the  latter  of 
300  horsemen  for  the  war  against  the  barons; 
the  similar  aUiance  with  the  Prefect  Giovanni  di 
Vico,  the  cruel  Lydian  guest  of  Petrarca's 
eclogue;  and  a  repetition  of  the  treacherous 
imprisonment  of  such  nobles  as  were  still  within 
his  reach.    Enough  has  been  given  to  make  it 


i8o     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

perfectly  clear  that  adverse  circumstances  had 
turned  Cola  into  a  haughty  and  arrogant  ruler; 
that  he  was  now  surrounded  by  men  of  inferior 
character.  In  a  word,  that  he  was  slowly  but 
surely  unfolding  into  a  full-fledged  tyrant. 

This  was  an  all-sufficient  cause  for  Petrarca's 
tears;  and  those  who  accuse  him  of  unmanli- 
ness,  of  lack  of  courage  and  determination,  of 
being  found  wanting  even  in  words  of  advice  in 
the  hour  of  extreme  necessity,  such  critics,  we 
say,  forget  that  Petrarca  could  have  nothing 
new  to  say;  that  for  six  months  he  had  done 
nothing  but  advise  and  exhort;  that  he  had 
defended  Cola  at  every  turn  and  had  preached 
the  gospel  of  ItaHan  hberty  as  far  as  the  power 
of  his  pen  permitted.  They  forget,  in  short, 
that  these  tears  were  absolutely  normal  and 
human.  Behold  yet  another  tyrant  added  to 
the  endless  list  over  whom  Italy  already  wept, 
and  against  whom  Petrarca  was  always  inveigh- 
ing. Behold  new  wounds,  sorrows,  woes.  His 
idol  was  shattered.  Instead  of  a  imited  Italy 
under  the  paternal  guidance  of  a  native  Italian; 
instead  of  a  peaceful  Italy  constructed  on 
national  lines,  he  beheld  an  addition  to  the 
hosts  and  the  legions  of  petty  rulers  and  princes. 
It  was  enough  to  have  made  the  angels  weep! 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  i8i 

Bitter  indeed  were  the  thoughts  that  accom- 
panied him  on  the  remainder  of  his  journey. 
The  skies  of  Italy  must  have  smiled  not  for  him 
thus  weighed  down  with  oppressive  forebod- 
ings. He  reached  Genoa  on  November  25 
(Frac,  I,  p.  175;  but  cf.  2,  197).  During  four 
continuous  days  he  lay  wrapped  up  in  gloom, 
receiving  new  letters  from  his  friends.  Then,  as 
a  drowning  man  clutching  at  the  last  straw,  he 
began  to  hope  against  hope.  He  began  to 
convince  himself  that  the  letter  which  he  had 
received  must  have  been  dictated  by  envy  and 
jealousy,  and  therefore  he  came  to  the  cheering 
conclusion  that  the  unwelcome  news  was  not, 
could  not  be  true.  In  the  moments  of  relief 
thus  engendered,  and  before  the  clouds  of 
despondency  again  closed  in  about  him, 
Petrarca  penned  the  following  letter  of  mingled 
exhortation  and  rebuke,  to  the  man  whom  he 
once  again  addressed  as  Tribime  of  the  Roman 
people  (Fam.,  VII,  7,  Genoa,  November  29, 
1347)- 


1 82      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

TO  COLA  DI  RIENZO,  TRIBUNE  OF  THE 
ROMAN  PEOPLE 

{Fam.,  VII,  7) 

Thine  actions  have  been  such  that  in  these 
past  months  I  have  oft  repeated,  and  with  great 
delight,  the  words  which  Cicero  puts  in  the 
mouth  of  Africanus:'  "What  is  this  soft,  sweet 
music  that  fills  my  ears  ?"  What  could  I  have 
said  that  would  more  fitly  have  answered  to  the 
splendor  of  thy  name,  or  to  the  joyful  tidings 
which  poured  in  upon  us  thick  and  fast  ?  The 
lengthy  letter  of  exhortation  which  I  wrote  to 
thee,  replete  with  encouragement  and  praises, 
clearly  indicates  how  fondly  I  repeated  those 
words.  I  pray  thee,  however,  not  to  obHge  me 
to  change  the  refrain,  and  to  ask :  "  What  is  this 
loud  and  deafening  crash  that  wounds  my 
ears?" 

Beware,  I  beseech  thee:  let  not  thine  own 
deeds  dishonor  thy  fair  name.  No  man  except 
thee  thyseK  can  dislodge  the  corner-stone  which 
thou  hast  laid.  Thou  alone  canst  overturn  the 
edifice  which  thy  hands  have  raised.  As  ever, 
the  builder  can  best  demoUsh  his  own  works. 
Thou  knowest  by  what  difficult  paths  thou  hast 
dimbed    to    glory.    Thy    footsteps    are    now 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  183 

turned  in  the  opposite  direction;  thou  art 
descending  from  thy  glorious  height,  and  nature 
herseh  makes  the  descent  easier.  Broad  is  the 
way;  and  the  words  of  the  poet,  "Easy  the 
descent  to  Avemus,"^  are  not  true  of  the  lower 
regions  only.  Our  hfe  in  this  world,  however, 
differs  from  the  hopeless  misery  of  those  who 
have  descended  to  the  abodes  of  darkness,  in 
that,  so  long  as  hfe  remains,  we  faU,  to  be  sure, 
but  we  may  rise  again;  we  are  ever  descending 
and  ascending.  But  from  the  lower  regions 
there  is  no  return. 

What  greater  foUy  than  to  fall  when  thou 
mightest  stand  undaunted,  simply  because  of 
thy  confidence  to  rise  again?  The  higher  the 
station,  the  more  dangerous  the  fall.  And 
what  greater  heights  can  be  reached  than  those 
of  virtue  and  of  glory,  the  very  summits  of 
which  thou  hadst  scaled,  though  inaccessible  to 
the  rest  of  our  generation  P^  Thou  foughtest 
thy  way  to  the  summit  with  such  energy  and  by 
such  untrodden  paths  that  I  doubt  whether  any 
man  was  ever  exposed  to  more  frightful  a  fall. 
Thou  must  advance  with  firm  and  dehberate 
step,  and  must  take  a  resolute  stand.  Do  not 
become  the  laughing-stock  of  thy  foes,  or  the 
despair  of  thy  friends.     An  illustrious  name  is 


i84     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

not  to  be  had  cheaply,  nor  is  it  kept  cheaply. 
"  The  guarding  of  a  great  name  is  itself  a  great 
task."  Pardon  me  for  quoting  to  thee  a  slight 
verse  of  my  own,  which  pleased  me  so  much 
that  I  was  not  ashamed  to  transfer  it  bodily 
from  my  daily  letters  to  my  epic  Africa.^ 
Pray  release  me  from  this  most  bitter  necessity: 
let  not  the  lyric  verses  which  I  have  begun  to 
compose  in  thy  praise  and  over  which  (as  my 
pen  can  testify)  I  have  spent  much  toil,  end 
in  satire.^ 

Do  not  suppose  that  I  am  writing  in  this 
vein  through  mere  chance,  or  that  I  am  com- 
plaining without  just  cause.  Letters  from  my 
friends  have  followed  me  since  I  left  the 
Curia.^  In  these  letters  reports  of  thy  doings 
have  reached  me  which  are  far  different  from 
the  earHer  reports.  I  hear  that  thou  no  longer, 
as  formerly,  lovest  the  whole  people  but  only  its 
worst  element;  that  it  is  these  only  whom  thou 
humorest,  for  whom  thou  showest  any  con- 
sideration, and  whose  support  thou  seekest. 
What  can  I  say  except  that  which  Brutus  once 
wrote  to  Cicero:'  "I  am  ashamed  of  such  con- 
dition and  such  fortune"?  Shall  the  world 
behold  thee,  who  hast  been  the  leader  of 
patriots,  become  the  accomphce  of  reprobates  ? 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA      185 

Has  our  star  sunk  so  rapidly  ?  Has  Providence 
been  so  quickly  angered?  Where  now  is  thy 
protecting  genius?  Where  now  (to  employ  a 
more  familiar  term),  is  that  Holy  Ghost,  the 
good  counselor  with  whom  it  was  generally 
thought  that  thou  didst  commune?^  And  it 
was  natural  to  suppose  this,  for  it  seemed 
impossible  that  thy  deeds  could  be  accom- 
pUshed  by  a  mere  mortal  except  through  divine 
intercession. 

But  why  grieve  so?  All  things  must  obey 
the  eternal  law.  I  cannot  change  conditions, 
but  I  can  flee  from  them.  Thou  seest,  there- 
fore, that  thou  hast  relieved  me  of  no  little 
trouble.  I  was  hastening  to  thee  with  eager- 
ness, but  I  have  now  abandoned  my  plans.  I 
am  resolved  not  to  behold  thee  other  than  thou 
hast  been  in  the  past.  And  a  long  farewell  also 
to  thee,  O  Rome,  if  these  rumors  be  true. 
Rather  shall  I  visit  the  regions  of  Garamant 
and  of  Ind.' 

But  are  they  true?  Oh,  end  unexpected! 
And  oh,  my  oversensitive  ears!  They  had 
become  trained  to  noble  reports;  these  they 
cannot  endure.  It  is  possible,  however,  that 
what  I  am  saying  is  false.  Would  that  it  were 
so!    Never  shall  I  more  gladly  have  been  con- 


i86     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

victed  of  error.  The  writer  of  that  letter  ranks 
high^  my  estunation;  but  I  detect  no  sHght 
traces  of  an  ill-will  with  which  I  have  become 
famiHar  through  many  incidents.  I  scarcely 
know  whether  such  envy  be  due  to  his  noble 
birth  or  to  his  eager  courage."  Therefore, 
though  my  grief  urges  me  to  write  further,  I 
shall  check  the  impulse,  a  thing  (I  assure  thee) 
which  were  impossible  did  I  not  cheer  my  fallen 
spirits  by  refusing  to  believe  the  unwelcome 
news. 

May  the  Lord  look  kindly  upon  thy  actions, 
and  may  these  have  a  more  joyous  issue  than  is 
reported.  I  should  much  rather  be  offended 
by  the  falsehood  of  the  one  friend,  than  by  the 
disgraceful  treason  of  the  other.  After  all, 
universal  practice  has  made  lying  a  daily  and 
commonplace  sin.  On  the  other  hand,  no  age, 
however  dissolute,  no  social  fabric,  and  no 
hcentiousness  has  ever  excused  the  traitor. 
Far  better,  therefore,  that  my  correspondent 
cause  me  a  few  days  of  sadness  by  his  false 
statements  than  thou  a  whole  life  of  gloom  by 
deserting  the  cause  of  freedom.  If  he  has 
transgressed  by  word,  by  word  shall  he  make 
atonement.  But  if  it  be  true  that  thou  hast 
committed  the  heinous  crime  of  treason  (and  I 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  187 

pray  it  be  not  true),  with  what  sacrifices  canst 
thou  ever  hope  to  expiate  thy  sin? 

Glory  is  immortal;  immortal,  too,  is  infamy." 
Wherefore,  if,  perchance,  thou  hast  no  regard 
for  thine  own  name  (which  I  cannot  beUeve), 
have  some  consideration  for  mine  at  least. 
Thou  knowest  how  great  a  storm  threatens  me. 
Thou  knowest  how  great  a  throng  of  slanderers 
will  attack  me  the  moment  thou  givest  sign  of 
weakening.  Therefore,  to  quote  the  words  of 
the  youth  in  Terence:"  "While  there  is  yet 
time,  reflect  again  and  again."  Consider  most 
carefully,  I  beseech  thee,  thine  every  action. 
Rouse  thyself  thoroughly.  Examine  thine  own 
conscience,  and  be  not  deceived  as  to  who  thou 
art  and  who  thou  hast  been,  whence  thou 
earnest  and  whither  goest,  and  how  far  it  is 
permissible  for  thee  to  go  without  detriment  to 
the  hberty  of  thy  country.  RecoUect  the  role 
which  thou  art  playing  in  thy  city's  history,  the 
title  thou  hast  assumed,  the  hopes  thou  hast 
aroused,  and  the  promises  thou  hast  made  to 
the  people.  Consider  all  this,  and  thou  wilt 
realize  that  thou  art  not  the  master  of  the 
RepubHc,  but  its  servant.^^ 

Written  at  Genoa,  November  29. 


i88     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

NOTES 

1.  Somnium  Scipionis  v.  i  {De  re  publica,  vi.  i8). 

2.  Aeneid,  vi.  126. 

3.  Compare  the  Canzone  Spirto  Gentil,  stanza  7,  vss. 
7-1 1,  given  in  Var.,  XL VIII,  n.  32. 

4.  The  original  Latin  of  this  verse  is  Magnus  enim 
labor  est  magnae  custodia  famae.  From  what  Petrarca 
says  here,  and  from  the  occurrences  of  the  verse  else- 
where, we  can  readily  reconstruct  its  history.  It  was 
first  used  in  the  lost  letter  to  which  the  poet  here  refers. 
Between  1339  and  1341,  he  inserted  it  into  his  epic 
Africa,  VII,  292.  In  1342,  he  again  quotes  it,  this 
time  as  coming  from  the  Africa,  in  his  Secretum,  or  De 
Contemptu  Mundi,  Dial.  Ill,  363  {Opera,  ed.  1581), 
which  work  was  composed  in  that  year.  On  November 
29,  1347,  he  cites  it  to  Cola,  Fam.,  VII,  7  (Frac,  I, 
p.  372).  Finally,  he  uses  it  once  again  in  Ep.  poet.,  II, 
15,  addressed  to  Cardinal  Giovanni  Colonna  {Opera, 
ed.  1 581,  III,  100,  2d  col.),  which  must  have  been 
written  either  at  Parma  in  the  December  of  1347  or  at 
Verona  in  the  January  of  1348;  for  the  Ep.  poet,  was 
prompted  by  the  news  of  the  slaughter  of  the  Colonna 
at  the  gate  of  S.  Lorenzo,  on  November  20,  1347, 
which  news  Petrarca  received  only  while  he  was 
staying  at  Parma  (Papencordt,  p.  185). 

5.  We  here  refer  the  reader  to  the  last  note  on  the 
letter  Var.,  XL VIII.  Continuing  with  the  explanation 
there  offered,  we  are  inclined  to  think  that  this  poem 
over  which  Petrarca  had  spent  so  much  toil  represents 
the  Latin  poem  promised  in  honor  of  Cola  at  the  end 
of  the  Hortatoria,  to  which  he  has  already  referred  in 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  189 

the  present  letter,  when  he  said  inscriptus  tibi  exhortatio- 
num  mearum  liber  (Frac,  I,  p.  371). 

6.  If  this  be  strictly  accurate  language,  we  must 
infer  therefrom  that  Petrarca  received  other  letters  in 
addition  to  that  of  Laelius.  Throughout  the  rest  of 
this  letter,  however,  he  emphasizes  but  one  letter  and 
but  one  writer,  Laelius. 

7.  Cicero,  Ad  M.  Brutum,  i.  16,  i:  quid  scribam? 
pudet  condicionis  ac  fortunae  sed  tamen  scribendum  est. 

8.  In  his  citation  of  August  i  to  the  emperors 
(Epistolario,  No.  XVII),  Cola  for  the  first  time  styles 
himself  Servant  and  Knight  of  the  Holy  Ghost  (op.  cit., 
p.  49,  1.  3),  and  Candidate  of  the  Holy  Ghost  {ibid., 
1.  ii).  The  latter  seems  to  have  appealed  more 
strongly  to  the  mystic  temperament  of  the  Tribunus 
Augustus;  for,  from  this  date  on  he  regularly  began 
his  oflficial  letters  with  Candidatus  Spiritus  Sancti  (cf. 
Epistolario,  Nos.  XVIII,  XIX,  XX,  XXI,  XXIV). 

9.  Compare  Vergil,  Aeneid,  vi.  794. 

10.  Laelius'  full  name  was  Lello  di  Pietro  dei 
Stefaneschi  dei  Tosetti.  The  members  of  his  house 
held  a  very  prominent  place  among  the  Roman  nobles, 
and  were  close  adherents  of  the  Colonna.  Indeed, 
Laelius  himself  was  one  of  the  numerous  courtiers 
constituting  the  household  of  Cardinal  Giovanni 
Colonna  at  Avignon.  These  facts  alone  would  suflSce 
to  make  him  harbor  ill-will  against  Cola;  but  we  call 
attention  to  a  document  which  seems  to  have  been 
overlooked  by  previous  investigators  in  the  history  of 
this  period,  and  which  throws  added  light  on  this  state- 
ment of  Petrarca.    We  mean  a  letter  of  Clement  VI 


IQO     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

addressed  Dilecto  filio  Nohili  viro  Lello  Petri  Stephani 
de  Tosettis,  domicello  Romano,  Magistro  hostiario  et 
familiari  nostro  (Theiner,  II,  No.  178,  p,  181,  dated 
October  5,  1347). 

We  are  strengthened  in  our  belief  that  this  is 
Petrarca's  friend  by  the  various  parts  of  the  address. 
Laelius  is  here  called  a  Roman  nobleman,  or  perhaps 
a  Roman  Syndic  (cf.  Du  Cange,  s.v.  domicellus, 
especially  under  No.  3),  a  friend  of  the  Pope,  and 
M agister  hostiarius  (or,  ostiarius),  which  we  translate 
Master  of  the  Guards  (compare  Du  Cange,  s.v.  hos- 
tiarius and  magister  ostiariorum).  This  last  title  is  in 
accordance  with  the  known  military  character  of 
Laelius;  and  we  suppose  that  the  Guards  here  men- 
tioned were  the  predecessors  of  the  Swiss  Guards,  and 
were  in  charge  of  the  entrances  and  the  gates  of  the 
papal  precincts. 

In  this  letter,  the  Pope  says,  after  some  preliminary 
remarks: 

"We  clearly  understand  from  the  documents  thou 
hast  submitted  that  a  short  time  ago  the  ofl&ce  of 
Syndic  in  the  city  of  Rome  was  (as  thou  assertest) 
conferred  upon  thee  by  our  beloved  sons,  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  city;  and  that  our  beloved  son  Cola  di 
Rienzo,  who  administers  in  our  name  the  office  of 
.  Rector  in  the  Roman  state,  has  without  any  pre- 
determined and  conceivable  reason,  caused  thee  to  be 
summoned  throughout  said  city  by  the  voice  of  a 
herald,  in  order  that,  under  penalty  of  permanent 
debarment  from  office  (to  use  his  own  words)  and  the 
confiscation  of  thy  property,  thou  mightest  appear  in 
person  within  a  specified  time,  to  render  an  account  of 
thy  incumbency  of  said  office  of  Syndic,  and  to  answer 


PETRARCA  REBUKES  COLA  191 

to  certain  points  in  regard  to  which  an  investigation  of 
thy  incumbency  was  being  conducted." 

From  what  follows  in  the  papal  brief  it  appears  that 
Laelius  had  first  asked  the  Pope,  and  then  the  Con- 
sistory, for  permission  to  absent  himself  from  his  post 
at  Avignon,  and  to  appear  before  Cola  and  thus  retain 
possession  of  his  estates.  But  the  Pope  pointed  out  to 
Laelius  that  Cola,  in  issuing  such  summons,  had  not 
consulted  his  superior  the  Pope,  in  whose  name  he  held 
office,  and  that  consequently  the  summons  itself  was 
null  and  void.  The  letter  continues  with  the  Pope 
absolving  Laelius  from  the  necessity  of  obeying  the 
Rector's  summons,  and  with  his  reassuring  Laelius  in 
the  undisputed  possession  of  the  estates  he  then  held 
and  of  those  he  would  acquire  in  the  future.  In  closing, 
the  Pope  distinctly  forbids  Laelius  to  go  to  Rome  under 
penalty  of  forfeiting  the  good  graces  of  his  Holiness  and 
also  of  being  discharged  from  the  position  which  he 
then  held  at  the  papal  court. 

In  conclusion,  we  think  that  it  was  this  personal 
reason,  in  addition  to  reasons  of  birth,  that  made 
Laelius  so  ready  and  so  keen  to  receive  bad  news  of 
Cola,  and  to  dispatch  such  news  so  eagerly  to  Petrarca 
who  was  setting  out  on  his  Roman  pilgrimage. 

11.  Petrarca  here  makes  a  general  statement, 
Immortale  decus  est,  immortalis  infamia  (Frac,  I, 
P- 373)5  i^  his  translation,  Fracassetti  wrongly  gives, 
Immortale  Vavrai  0  Vonore,  0  Vinfamia,  applying  the 
words  directly  to  Cola  (Frac,  2,  p.  190). 

12.  Terence,  Eunuchus,  i.  i,  11  (or  according  to  the 
consecutive  numbering,  vs.  56). 


192     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

13.  Tears  indeed!  And  to  think  that  but  one  week 
previous  to  the  writing  of  this  letter  Petrarca,  then  in 
the  slough  of  despondency,  had  thought  himself  unable 
to  offer  even  words  of  advice.  Tyrtaeus  continued  to 
sing  martial  strains  in  his  endeavor  to  reanimate 
drooping  spirits,  but  there  were  no  Spartans  to  hearken 
imto  his  song. 


CHAPTER  XI 

Cola's  fortune  reached  its  zenith  with  the 
successful  battle  fought  on  November  20,  1347. 
Thenceforward,  intoxicated  at  his  success,  his 
behavior  became  more  and  more  uncertain, 
inconsistent,  and  questionable.  The  surviving 
barons  aUied  themselves  with  Cardinal  Ber- 
trand.  Cola,  threatened  with  excommimica- 
tion,  resigned  the  office  of  podesta;  and,  in  his 
efforts  to  reconcile  himself  with  the  church, 
again  embraced  with  eagerness  the  title  of 
Rector  of  the  Pope.  It  would,  however,  take 
us  beyond  the  purposes  of  the  present  volume 
to  enter  into  the  details  of  Cola's  fall.  Suffice 
it  to  say  that  the  direct  cause  (remembering,  of 
course,  also  the  famous  tax  on  salt)  was  his 
entangling  alliance  with  King  Louis  of  Hungary. 
This  called  into  being  irresistible  situations 
and  problems  that  were  too  knotty  for  Cola's 
present  shattered  intellect.  Consequently,  on 
December  15,  1347,  Cola  quietly  descended 
from  the  CampidogHo,  the  stage  from  which  he 
had  brought  to  the  Romans  and  to  the  world 
visions  of  the  ancient  days  of  glory. 

We  may  follow  the  events  of  Roman  history 
193 


194     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

in  only  the  most  cursory  manner.  Papal  power 
was  almost  immediately  restored,  and  Cola  fled 
to  Naples,  hoping  to  find  refuge  with  the  king 
of  Hungary,  who  had  just  captured  that  city 
(January  24,  1348).  The  dreadful  pestilence  of 
that  year,  however,  forced  the  king  to  return 
across  the  Alps,  and  Cola  fled  to  the  inacces- 
sible mountains  of  the  Abruzzi,  hunted  down 
and  pursued  at  every  turn  by  the  ban  of  the 
church.  At  Rome,  Bertoldo  Orsini  and  Luca 
Savelli,  the  two  senators  appointed  by  the  papal 
delegate,  proved  unequal  to  the  situation  which 
faced  them. 

The  Black  Death  which  so  depopulated 
Europe  in  general,  everywhere  turning  the 
existing  disorder  into  chaos  and  anarchy,  fell 
upon  Rome  also,  but  not  with  so  heavy  a  hand. 
To  make  the  misery  complete,  however,  earth- 
quakes foUowed  one  another  in  rapid  succes- 
sion, at  times  destroying  entire  cities,  and 
ever3rwhere  overthrowing  towers,  palaces, 
churches,  and  basilicas  into  a  heap  of  indescrib- 
able ruins.  Such  happenings  could  be  under- 
stood only  as  the  visitations  of  the  Creator's 
wrath  upon  the  sinful  population  of  Europe,  a 
dire  punishment  for  its  unbounded  Hcentious- 
ness  and  for  the  wreckless  destruction  of  all 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  195 

barriers  in  political  and  social  relations.  The 
Jubilee  of  1350,  therefore — the  declaration  of 
which  was  in  great  part  due  to  the  efforts  of 
Cola  di  Rienzo  seven  years  before — came  at  a 
most  opportune  moment.  It  directed  the 
minds  of  men  to  higher  things.  The  teachings 
of  the  Son  of  Man,  and  the  moral  truths  of  the 
sacred  writings  are  never  more  ftdly  inter- 
preted than  in  the  hour  of  adversity.  The 
Europeans  of  the  fourteenth  century,  down- 
trodden by  the  beasts  in  human  form  that  in 
so  many  instances  ruled  over  them,  rendered 
orphans  by  the  ravages  of  the  plague  and 
homeless  by  the  convulsions  of  Nature,  were 
seized  with  a  contagious  enthusiasm.  They 
turned  to  the  Scriptures  with  the  holy  and 
irresistible  faith  of  the  early  martyrs.  From 
the  pilgrimage  to  Rome  mankind  promised 
itself  and  confidently  expected  the  recovery 
from  aU  its  ills  and  the  regeneration  of  the  world. 
And  so  it  proved  to  be  in  great  measure.  We 
cannot  underestimate  the  influence  for  good  of 
this  spiritual  upUft.  The  pious  fervor  of  the 
Crusaders  again  seized  the  hearts  of  men,  and 
countless  pilgrims  must  have  spread  an  atmos- 
phere of  holiness  and  of  sanctity  on  their  return 
from  the  Jubilee  city.    There  was,  however,  a 


196     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

loud  note  of  discord:  the  addition  of  St.  John 
the  Lateran  as  a  third  pilgrimage  church  for 
the  Jubilee  could  hardly  compensate  for  the 
absence  of  the  Supreme  Pontiff  in  France; 
and  the  papal  benediction  which  served  as  a 
seal  to  the  pilgrimage  was  not  administered 
from  the  loggia  of  the  Mother  of  Churches,  but 
from  one  of  the  far-off  towers  of  the  Palace  by 
the  Rhone. 

The  artificial  truce  estabHshed  by  the  Jubilee 
came  to  an  end  even  before  the  echoes  of  the 
pilgrims'  choruses  had  grown  faint.  New 
senators  were  constantly  appointed,  one  rep- 
resenting the  interests  of  the  Colonna,  the  other 
those  of  the  Orsini.  All  were  doomed  to  the 
same  ignominious  failure.  Cardinal  Bertrand 
de  Deux  had  been  succeeded  by  Cardinal 
Annibaldo  di  Ceccano,  legate  for  the  Jubilee 
year.  This  cardinal  so  irritated  the  Romans 
that  an  attack  was  made  upon  him.  Shortly 
afterward  he  was  visited  by  the  cardinal  of  St. 
Chrysogonus,  an  eminent  French  prelate  who 
then  happened  to  be  in  Rome.  And  the  latter 
to  comfort  Annibaldo  for  the  attempt  upon  his 
life,  said  to  him  {Vita,  II,  2,  col.  883):  "He 
who  would  wish  to  restore  Rome  to  order, 
would  be  obliged  to  destroy  it  utterly,  and  then 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  197 

to  rebuild  it  anew."  De  Sade  (III,  224) 
pronounces  this  story  to  be  false.  Whether 
false  or  true,  the  anecdote  gives  a  true  picture 
of  the  almost  insurmountable  difficulties  facing 
Annibaldo.  When  he  fled,  Annibaldo  delegated 
his  powers  to  Ponzio  Perroto,  Bishop  of 
Orvieto. 

The  question  of  giving  the  unruly  and 
recalcitrant  Romans  some  permanent  form  of 
government  now  became  a  problem  of  para- 
mount importance  to  the  Pope  and  to  his 
cardinals.  In  13  51  finally,  Clement  VI  ap- 
pointed a  commission  of  four  cardinals,  with 
power  to  settle  this  question  to  the  best  of  their 
abihty.  These  men  must  have  sat  long  and 
dehberated  profoundly;  and  at  last,  in  their 
perplexity,  it  occurred  to  one  of  them  that  it 
might  be  profitable  to  obtain  what  we  would 
today  call  expert  opinion.  There  was  but  one 
man  to  whom  a  commission  thus  constituted 
could  submit  itself  with  becoming  deference. 
Petrarca  immediately  availed  himself  of  the 
opportunity  thus  extended  to  him,  and  wrote  a 
lengthy  ex  cathedra  exposition  which  he  for- 
warded to  the  cardinals  in  two  letters  {Fam., 
XI,  16,  17,  respectively  dated  November  18 
and  24,  1351).    "Both  letters  [to  quote  Grego- 


198     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

rovius,  VI,  330,  n.  i],  which  redound  to 
Petrarch's  honor  as  a  patriot,  are  manifestos  of 
the  democratic  principle  which  governed  the 

cities  at  this  time Petrarch,  questioned 

as  to  the  best  constitution  for  Rome,  resembles 
Rousseau,  placed  in  a  similar  position  with 
regard  to  the  Corsicans  and  Poles."  The 
following  is  the  first  of  these  letters. 


TO  THE  FOUR  CARDINALS  APPOINTED 

TO    REFORM    THE    GOVERNMENT 

OF  ROME^ 

{Fam.,  XI,  16) 

A  weighty  burden  is  placed  upon  my  weak 
shoulders  by  one  to  whom  I  can  deny  nothing, 
and  in  behalf  of  that  city  for  which  refusal  is 
impossible.  The  love  which  rules  within  me 
bade  me  heed  the  request.  The  safety  of  our 
common  country  and  mother  was  at  stake; 
and  he  who  is  not  moved  by  the  woes  of  his  dear 
mother  is  not  a  true  son.  In  addition  to  this 
debt  which  mankind  in  general  owes,  there  is 
added  a  certain  special  claim  which  the  city  of 
Rome  has  upon  my  services  for  its  former 
favors,  in  that,  by  extraordinary  privilege,  she 
elected  me  her  citizen.'    Perchance,  not  the 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  199 

least  mark  of  her  favor  is  the  fact  that  at  this 
crisis,  when  her  name  and  her  glory  are  waning, 
she  places  some  hopes  of  assistance  in  me. 
Rome,  in  short,  has  ever  deserved  well  of  me. 
K  her  welfare  be  at  stake,  silence  on  my  part 
would  be  not  only  disgraceful,  but  inhuman 
and  ungrateful. 

I  have  wished  to  preface  these  remarks,  in 
order  that  no  one  may  consider  me  mad  or 
forgetful  of  myself,  charging  that  I  have 
undertaken  a  task  beyond  my  powers  and  that, 
contrary  to  the  advice  of  the  sage,  I  have  aimed 
too  high  and  too  presumptuously.  Let  no  one 
be  roused  to  indignation  if  he  hears  the  Uberties 
of  Rome  championed  in  affectionate  and 
respectful  words,  even  though  he  may  deem 
them  lowly  at  one  moment,  prosaic  the  next, 
and,  perchance,  even  irrelevant.  The  obhga- 
tion  resting  upon  me  is,  I  confess,  one  of  great 
responsibihty;  my  conclusions  are  to  be  dis- 
cussed in  the  presence  of  prominent  men,  and 
are  to  be  submitted  to  the  Supreme  Pontiff.  I 
am  conscious  of  my  own  insignificance;  but  an 
inborn  devotion  to  the  cause  of  Rome  gives  me 
courage  to  speak.  Therefore,  ye  most  reverend 
Fathers  to  whom  the  reordering  of  the  state 
has  been  intrusted,  if  (as  I  hope)   you  are 


200     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

favorably  disposed  to  accept  this  excuse  for  my 
boldness,  give  respectful  attention,  I  beg  of  you? 
to  words  spoken  in  good  faith,  and  charitably 
consider  not  who  I  am,  but  the  motives  which 
prompt  me;  consider  not  the  form,  but  the 
substance  of  my  speech;  indeed,  judge  not  so 
much  that  which  I  say,  as  that  which  I  should 
wish  to  say,  and  which  could  be  said  on  so 
pregnant  a  topic. 

And  in  the  first  place,  I  presume  the  following 
to  be  an  idea  deeply  rooted  in  your  minds: 
that  no  group  of  words  strikes  a  more  responsive 
chord  in  the  heart  of  man  than  these,  The 
Roman  RepubHc.  No  region  of  this  earth,  no 
barbarian  nation,  will  gainsay  it.  The  entire 
world  would  unanimously  proclaim  it,  were  it 
possessed  of  a  tongue  to  speak.  It  would 
openly  acknowledge  Rome  its  head,  even 
though  she  is  now  miserably  unkept,  forlorn, 
and  unadorned. 3  Wherefore,  though  Rome 
were  but  a  name,  still  would  the  name  be  that 
of  a  city  once  queen  of  the  world  and  conse- 
quently, in  my  opinion,  a  name  to  be  spoken 
with  a  certain  degree  of  reverence.  It  would 
ever  represent,  I  say,  that  city  which  Omnipo- 
tent God  had  adorned  with  the  many,  marked 
favors  of  both  the  temporal  and  the  spiritual 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  201 

dominion;  the  city  wherein  he  had  set  the 
cradle  of  the  true  faith,  the  Rock  of  his  church, 
and  the  supreme  seat  of  empire. 

But  that  Rome  may  be  something  more  than 
a  mere  name,  that  she  may  become  the  object 
of  our  hopes  or  of  our  fears,  ample  provision 
has  at  last  been  made.  The  Roman  Pontiff 
has  chosen  you  in  particular  from  among  the 
entire  number  composing  the  Sacred  College. 
Upon  you  has  he  shouldered  this  glorious  and 
incomparable  burden,  a  burden  which  must 
seem  a  very  heavy  one  to  those  who  are  keenly 
alive  to  the  exigencies  of  the  case.  As  we 
meditate  upon  his  action,  we  come  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  selection  of  you  four  in 
particular  was  not  without  cause  or  design,  but, 
indeed,  that  it  was  inspired  from  on  high. 
Three  of  you  are  endowed  with  most  profound 
wisdom  and  with  vast  learning;  and  in  addi- 
tion, experience  has  given  to  you  an  intimate 
knowledge  of  Roman  affairs.  The  fourth 
member  of  your  board  is  not  merely  of  Roman 
origin,  but  (according  to  some)  traces  his 
ancestry  to  that  most  renowned  and  ancient 
family  of  the  Cornehi.  It  is  not,  therefore, 
without  divine  inspiration  that  this  man,  a 
noble  example  of  true  patriotism  and  sweet  love 


202     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

of  country,  should  now  bravely  champion  and 
plead  the  rights  of  the  defenseless  plebeians 
against  the  proud  nobles,  and  should  protect 
the  cause  of  oppressed  liberty."  Appointed  by 
the  Lord  to  judge  this  cause,  give  ye  no  occasion 
to  charges  of  indolence,  and  have  no  regard  for 
the  requests  and  power  of  any  man. 

But  briefly  to  express  my  opinions  on  the 
question  before  us,  I  shall  say  that  this  is  a 
repetition  of  the  old  Roman  struggle.  Would 
that  the  tyrants  of  today  were  no  worse  than 
those  of  old!  This  dastardly,  self-satisfied 
nobility,  spuming  and  despising  all  things, 
abuses  the  excessive  meekness  of  the  Roman 
plebeians,  and  drags  them  to  a  shameful 
triumph,  not  otherwise  than  if  they  were  so 
many  Carthaginians  or  Cimbri  taken  in  war 
and  sent  under  the  yoke.  And  yet  no  law 
sanctions  such  proceeding;  no  tradition  war- 
rants it,  nor  has  anyone  ever  been  heard  to  say 
that  Romans  triumphed  over  subjugated  fellow- 
Romans. 

That  no  one  may  suspect  my  words  to  be 
prompted  by  even  the  slightest  maHce,  it  may 
not  be  inappropriate  to  mention  here,  by  way 
of  parenthesis,  that,  of  the  two  famiUes  whence 
all  this  trouble  arises,  I  do  not  hate  the  one. 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  203 

whereas  the  other  (needless  to  say)  I  do  not 
merely  love,  but  indeed  have  cherished  through- 
out a  long  period  of  almost  famihar  mtercourse. 
In  fact,  I  wish  to  state  here  that  none  of  the 
princely  families  of  this  world  has  been  dearer 
to  me  than  the  latter.  Nevertheless  the  pubUc 
welfare  is  even  dearer  to  me.  Dearer  is  Rome, 
dearer  is  Italy,  dearer  the  peace  and  the 
security  of  the  upright. 

It  was  to  attain  this  security  that  (speaking 
with  peace  to  the  Uving  and  to  the  dead)  both 
God  and  man  and  fortune  toiled  and  strove 
harmoniously.  Their  aim  was  to  make  Rome  a 
stupendous  city,  fit  to  be  the  seat  of  both 
church  and  empire,  and  not  the  petty  prin- 
cipahty  of  a  few  citizens.  Indeed,  if  with  your 
gracious  leave  I  may  be  permitted  to  speak  the 
entire  truth,  I  shall  correct  my  statement  and 
shall  say  that  Rome  was  not  meant  to  be  the 
prey  of  men  who  are  not  even  Roman  citizens, 
and  who  do  not  even  love  the  name  of  Rome.  I 
shall  not  delay  to  review  the  origin  of  both  these 
families.  It  is  common  knowledge,  and  is  sung 
by  the  shepherds  in  the  valleys  of  the  Rhine 
and  of  Spoleto.  The  queen  of  nations  has  sunk 
into  abject  misery.  To  none  is  she  an  object  of 
compassion.     She  has  been  rent  and  mangled, 


204     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

not  by  the  hands  of  her  own  children  (as  of 
yore),  but  by  those  of  strangers.^  No  longer 
can  she  derive  consolation  from  those  old  Hnes: 

Our  war  no  interfering  kings  demands, 
Nor  shall  be  trusted  to  barbarian  hands: 
Among  ourselves  our  bonds  we  will  deplore, 
And  Rome  shall  serve  the  rebel  son  she  bore.* 

Can  it  be  doubted  that  we  should  amend 
these  wrongs  ?  But  no  thought  is  being  given 
to  that  which  should  have  demanded  our  first 
attention,  namely,  with  what  carefully  chosen 
penalties  we  should  punish  these  pubUc  robbers, 
or,  at  any  rate,  in  what  way  these  enemies  of 
liberty  can  be  most  completely  prevented  from 
holding  office  in  a  free  state.  Wonderful  to 
relate,  this  is  the  question  which  men  are  now 
debating:  whether  or  not  the  Roman  people, 
who  once  ruled  the  universe,  should  be  restored 
to  some  degree  of  liberty,  whether  or  not  they 
may  today  participate  to  any  extent  with  their 
domestic  tyrants  in  the  government  of  their 
own  city;  and  whether  they  are  to  have  any 
voice  on  that  very  Capitol  from  which  they 
drove  the  flames  and  the  power  of  the  Senonian 
Gauls,  where  they  once  beheld  captured  kings 
chained  to  the  triumphal  chariots,  where  they 
listened  haughtily  to  the  suppliant  envoys  of 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  205 

foreign  nations,  and  whence  they  hurled  to  head- 
long destruction  proud  citizens  as  well  as  enemies. 

0  kind  Jesus,  to  what  have  we  come  ?  Dost 
thou  observe  these  things,  O  Savior  ?  Art  thou 
perchance  offended  by  our  sins  ?  Whither  hast 
thou  turned  thy  eyes  that  are  wont  to  look  with 
mercy  ?  Have  mercy  upon  us,  and  wipe  away 
the  stains  of  our  deep  disgrace. 

Are  we  then  faUen  so  low  ?  Was  this,  I  ask, 
to  be  the  end  of  all  our  woes,  that  in  pubUc  and 
indeed  (which  is  far  worse)  in  the  presence  of 
the  Vicar  of  Christ  and  of  the  successors  of  the 
apostles,  the  question  should  be  raised  whether 
or  not  it  is  proper  for  a  Roman  citizen  to  be 
elected  Senator?  And  this  notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  for  so  many  years  we  have  wit- 
nessed on  the  Capitol  the  rule  of  foreign-born 
tyrants,  and  of  so  many  proud  Tarquins? 
Behold  the  question  toward  the  solution  of 
which  four  heavenly  Hinges  are  laboring!^ 

For  my  part,  I  should  not  hesitate,  if  con- 
sulted, to  answer  that,  according  to  Roman 
custom,  the  Roman  Senate  should  perforce  be 
constituted  of  Roman  citizens;  that  foreigners 
should  all  be  barred  from  the  threshold,  not 
merely  those  bom  in  a  far-off  land,  but  also  the 
Latins  and  those  races  inhabiting  the  country 


2o6     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

near  and  even  adjacent  to  that  of  the  Romans, 
men  havuig,  so  to  speak,  the  very  same  body 
with  the  Romans.  I  add  that  these  foreigners 
should  be  excluded  not  merely  by  word  or  by 
pen,  but,  if  necessary,  even  by  the  sword.  Let 
the  example  of  Aulus  (sic)  ManHus  Torquatus 
suffice,  who,  when  the  Latins  once  asked  that 
the  high  Council  and  half  the  Senate  be  chosen 
from  their  number,  was  so  stirred  with  indigna- 
tion as  to  swear  that  he  would  enter  the 
Senate-house  in  arms,  and  would  destroy  with 
his  own  hand  all  the  Latins  he  might  find 
there.*  With  what  feelings,  then,  would  Tor- 
quatus have  beheld  the  entire  Senate  composed 
of  men  hailing  from  the  banks  of  the  Rhine  or 
from  Umbria,  he  who  so  indignantly  received 
the  proposal  of  the  Latins  that  only  half  the 
Senate  should  become  non-Roman  ? 

Our  present  foreigners  do  not  wish  to  seem  to 
exercise  their  mad  power  without  just  cause. 
They  give  this  defense  for  their  usurpation  of 
the  senatorial  privilege:  that  they  are  the 
stronger,  and  consequently  the  more  fitted  to 
bear  the  burden  of  so  high  an  office.  What  is 
this  power  they  boast  of,  a  power  which  is  never 
evinced  except  to  the  detriment  of  the  state? 
Whence  is  it  derived,  great  or  small  though  it 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  207 

be,  except  from  the  blood  of  the  people  and  from 
the  very  vitals  of  the  republic?  But  even 
granting  that  their  power  is  great,  and  that  it  is 
just;  what  bearing,  I  ask,  has  that  upon  the 
problem  before  us?  Surely,  when  the  above- 
mentioned  embassy  of  the  Latins  came  to 
Rome,  Latium  was  described  as  being  flourish- 
ing in  arms,  men,  and  resources.  Nonetheless 
their  proposal  was  rejected,  because,  relying  on 
their  power,  they  had  aspired  to  undeserved 
honors,  and  because  the  Romans  would  not 
grant  to  the  caprice  of  fortune  honors  that  are 
the  reward  of  manly  conduct. 

Forsooth,  if  the  senatorial  dignity  at  Rome 
were  to  be  the  reward  of  mere  brute  force,'  and 
if  no  regard  were  to  be  had  for  either  birth  or 
conduct,  then  Macedonia  and  Carthage  in 
ancient  times,  and  today  other  powerful  nations 
of  the  earth  could  present  a  far  more  just  and 
better  claim  than  the  Roman  barons.  In 
excusing  their  usurpation,  even  the  barons  wiU 
retort:  "We  are  Romans;  we  have  become 
Roman  citizens  by  our  long  and  exclusive 
tenure  of  ofiice,  and  by  the  suppression  of 
liberty."  I  should  esteem  it  no  sHght  victory  if 
I  had  caused  these  most  haughty  spirits  to  wish 
to  be  real  citizens  and  not  the  plague  of  citizens. 


2o8     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

I  should  not  then  bar  them  from  an  honorable 
career  with  the  inflexibiUty  of  ManUus 
Torquatus. 

In  the  name  of  God  who  takes  pity  on  the 
affairs  of  this  world,  O  Fathers  most  kind,  and 
if  you  yourselves  are  moved  by  any  compassion 
for  the  Roman  name,  I  ask  whether  you 
honestly  beheve  that  these  barons  have  seized 
the  reins  of  government  with  the  purpose  of 
bringing  their  resources  to  the  aid  of  the 
poverty-stricken  city  ?  Would  that  they  were 
of  this  mind!  I  should  then  forgive  them  their 
generous  ambition,  and  should  admit  them  as 
candidates  for  ofi&ce  no  matter  what  their 
origin.  But,  beheve  me,  they  cherish  far 
different  aims.  They  purpose  not  so  much  to 
appease  their  insatiable  and  gluttonous  himger, 
but  to  whet  it  with  the  remnants  of  the  ruined 
city.  They  will,  perchance,  dare  deny  even 
this  palpable  fact.  They  will  wish  to  veil  with 
a  general  barefaced  denial  the  long  series  of 
crimes  committed  throughout  their  lives  and 
known  to  the  whole  world.  They  will  desire 
to  be  called  Roman  citizens  and  lovers  of  Rome. 
But  not  so !  To  call  these  barons  citizens,  aye 
to  call  them  men  instead  of  princes  and  gods, 
constitutes  a  mortal  offense.^" 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  209 

Although  I  have  impartial  judges,  neverthe- 
less I  am  arguing  a  case  under  very  unfavorable 
circumstances.  I  shall  concede,  therefore — 
but  merely  for  the  sake  of  peace — a  thing  which 
it  would  be  most  easy  to  refute:  that  these 
barons  are  citizens,  and  moreover  peaceable 
citizens.  Though  unworthy,  let  them  attain  to 
office,  provided  only  they  do  not  exclude  the 
most  deserving.  If  strangers  compete  against 
native  Romans,  and  if  all  are  to  be  designated 
by  the  common  name  of  Romans,  why  should 
only  they  be  elected  to  office  who  enjoy  the 
name  of  Romans  on  sufferance,  as  it  were;  and 
why,  indeed,  should  they  be  given  the  prefer- 
ence over  their  fellow-citizens  in  anything 
whatsoever?  Is  it  because  of  their  nobility? 
But  the  essence  of  true  nobility  is  still  a  moot 
point.  Then  only  will  the  barons  realize  how 
noble  they  are  when  they  will  likewise  realize 
how  virtuous  and  upright  they  are. 

Do  the  barons,  perhaps,  claim  superiority 
and  preference  because  of  their  riches?  I  do 
not  desire  here  to  belittle  the  extent  of  their 
wealth.  I  warn  them  of  this,  however:  that 
they  should  not,  for  that  reason,  despise  those 
who  are  poorer  than  they;  that  mere  wealth 
adds  absolutely  nothing  to  persons  of  good 


2IO     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

moral  character;  and  that,  remembering  that 
riches  are  only  of  this  world,  they  should  use 
with  moderation  the  wealth  which  they  have 
sucked  from  the  breasts  of  mother  church.  If, 
however,  they  are  so  inclined,  and  if  their  dull 
intellects  do  not  rise  to  the  level  of  these  higher 
concepts,  let  them  enjoy  their  wealth  as 
though  it  were  an  everlasting  boon,  provided 
they  observe  this  one  restriction,  not  to  employ 
for  the  destruction  of  the  people  the  riches 
which  they  have  amassed  through  the  people's 
generosity. 

But  if  they  deem  private  wealth  to  be  a 
necessary  qualification  for  public  honors,  I 
should  wish  them  to  give  answer  to  the  following 
questions.  How  much  wealth  did  Valerius 
PubHcola  possess,  when  he  aided  Brutus  in 
expelling  the  proud  kings,  or  when  in  his  first 
consulship  he  triumphed  over  the  Etruscans, 
and  in  his  third  consulship  over  the  Sabines? 
Indeed,  he  died  so  poor  that  he  was  buried  at 
the  pubHc  expense.  Again,  how  rich  was 
Menenius  Agrippa,  when,  with  words  of  divine 
inspiration,  he  cemented  the  discordant  and 
divided  repubHc?  or  Quinctius  Cincinnatus, 
who,  abandoning  his  meager  farm,  saved  Rome 
from  defeat  and  freed  from  a  siege  a  Roman 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  2ii 

consul  and  a  Roman  army  ?"  What  wealth  did 
Curius  possess,  or  Fabricius,  when  they  over- 
threw the  standards  of  King  Pyrrhus  and  of  the 
Samnites  ?  or  AttiUus  Regulus,  who  vanquished 
the  legions  of  Carthage?  or  Appius  Claudius, 
who,  though  deprived  of  sight,  continued  to 
rule  the  republic  wisely  ? 

It  wotdd  be  an  endless  task  to  gather  all  the 
examples  of  a  glorious  poverty.  Nevertheless, 
I  dare  affirm  (though  the  rabble  may  cry  out 
against  me)  that  the  greatest  obstacle  to  true 
virtue  is  overabundant  wealth.  That  I  may 
not,  however,  undertake  to  pluck  out  notions 
that  are  most  deeply  rooted  and  fixed,  I  dare 
affirm  what  most  clearly  results  from  the 
writings  of  the  ancient  authors,  that  riches 
conquered  Rome,  the  conqueror  of  nations.  It 
is  beyond  the  shadow  of  a  doubt  that  foreign 
vices  and  foreign  evils  entered  Rome  by  one 
and  the  same  gate  through  which  poverty  had 
left. 

But  to  return  to  our  barons.  They  beHeve, 
or  (as  I  think  more  likely)  they  pretend  to 
beHeve  that  wealth  will  be  of  the  very  greatest 
advantage  to  them,  though  it  has  ever  been  the 
greatest  bane  of  rulers.  It  remains  for  us  to 
inquire  into  the  real  cause  of  their  desire  to  rule. 


212      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

It  is  not  far  to  seek.  I  shall  make  no  mention 
of  avarice,  which,  though  it  might  be  suspected 
from  many  indications,  my  sense  of  decency 
forbids  me  to  mention  in  this  discussion. 
Disgrace  most  foul  would  it  be  for  avarice  to 
dwell  in  noble  hearts,  from  which,  on  the 
contrary,  it  is  always  banished  to  a  remote 
distance.  But  now  I  am  speaking  of  nobility 
in  the  general  acceptation  of  the  word!  I  shall 
merely  point  out  (with  Sallust)  that  pride  is  the 
evil  common  to  all  nobles."  It  is  not,  there- 
fore, a  new  disease  which  now  infests  the  state. 
It  attacked  the  ancient  Romans,  the  true  Rom- 
ans, and  the  deadly  poison  crept  stealthily  among 
the  noblest  virtues.  It  was  always  checked, 
however,  by  the  dignified  resistance  of  the 
lowly,  as  now,  I  hope,  it  is  to  be  crushed  by 
your  decisions,  most  worthy  Fathers.  But  my 
statements  seem  to  require  amplification. 

From  the  very  beginning,  the  Roman 
plebeians  were  wronged  most  cruelly.  They 
demanded  magistrates  of  their  own  to  assert 
and  to  protect  their  uncertain  liberty.  The 
nobility  opposed  their  demands  in  a  bitter 
struggle,  and  hence  the  first  secession  to  the 
Sacred  Mount.  The  plebeians,  with  justice  on 
their  side,  finally  overcame  the  pride  of  the 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  213 

nobles;  and  though  the  patricians  protested  in 
vain,  there  came  into  existence  for  the  first 
time  the  Tribune  of  the  people,  the  one  spur 
and  curb  upon  the  violence  of  the  nobles. 
After  some  time  the  plebeians  demanded  that 
this  officer  be  elected  in  their  own  assembly, 
that  is  to  say  in  the  tribunician  assembly. 
Again  they  were  victorious,  though  opposed  by 
Appius  Claudius,  the  keenest  of  the  patricians. 

Thereafter  a  new  struggle  arose,  for  the  upper 
class,  with  proud  disdain,  refused  to  recognize 
the  intermarrying  of  plebeians  with  patricians. 
In  this  way  the  most  sacred  bond  of  society 
was  torn  asunder,  and  the  state  was  for  the 
second  time  spHt  in  twain.  The  indignant 
plebs  offered  vigorous  opposition,  and,  with  the 
reluctant  consent  of  the  nobles,  a  law  was 
passed  recognizing  such  intermarriages  as  legal. 
The  priestly  duties,  the  office  of  decemvir,  the 
quaestorship,  and  the  curule  aedileship  were 
still  reserved  to  those  of  patrician  birth.  The 
plebeians  realized  that  they  were  being  made 
sport  of.  They  rose  in  their  might  and  secured 
the  privilege  of  sharing  in  these  offices  too. 

And  here  I  must  not  pass  over  that  brief 
anecdote  related  by  Titus  Livy,  of  small 
importance  in  itself,  but  most  clearly  mani- 


214     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

festing  the  pride  of  the  patricians  and  the 
plebeians'  love  of  liberty.  Gnaeus  Flavius,  the 
son  of  a  scribe,  a  man  of  humble  fortune,  but 
keen  and  well-spoken,  had  been  elected  curule 
aedile.  This  election  so  stirred  the  resentment 
of  the  nobles  (who  shrank  back  at  the  novelty 
of  the  appointment),  that  very  many  of  them, 
grieving  over  his  election  as  over  a  personal  loss, 
laid  aside  their  golden  rings  and  other  orna- 
ments. Flavius,  on  the  contrary,  was  not  at 
aU  disturbed  thereat,  but  met  their  insolence 
with  a  serene  firmness  and  perseverance. 
Later  it  happened  that  Flavius  visited  his 
colleague  who  lay  sick  in  bed.  As  he  entered 
the  room,  several  young  patricians  who  were 
present,  in  obedience  to  the  contempt  which 
they  all  harbored,  did  not  rise  to  offer  him  a 
seat.  Flavius  immediately  ordered  his  curule 
chair  to  be  brought  in.^^  Thus  he  more  nobly 
set  at  naught  the  scorn  of  the  youthful  nobles; 
for  he  now  looked  down  upon  them  as  they 
consumed  themselves  with  envy,  not  from  the 
bench  of  a  private  citizen,  but  from  the  chair 
of  office.  In  my  opinion,  this  one  act  proved 
him  most  worthy  to  fill  the  office,  not  only  of 
aedile,  but  even  of  consul. 

I  have  purposely  reserved  the  office  of  consul 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  215 

unto  the  end,  because  the  two  senators,  who 
alone  survive  from  the  great  number  of  con- 
script fathers  who  once  constituted  the  Roman 
Senate,  can  be  deemed  to  be  the  successors  of 
the  two  consuls.  The  tenure  of  oifice  both  of 
our  modem  senators  and  of  the  consuls  of  old 
is  a  hmited  one;  the  senatorial  dignity  in 
ancient  Rome,  however,  was  enjoyed  for  life. 
If  I  were  even  to  begin  to  rehearse  the  countless, 
bitter  struggles  over  the  consulship,  I  should 
put  off  even  longer  the  end  of  this  letter,  toward 
which  I  am  hastening.  Suffice  it  to  know  this: 
that  when  the  Roman  plebs  sought  to  gain 
admission  even  to  this,  the  highest  magistracy, 
the  patricians  considered  that  such  a  con- 
summation would  be  to  their  lasting  disgrace, 
and  so  opposed  it  with  all  their  power.  Finally, 
however,  they  were  conquered  as  on  previous 
occasions.  Many  disagreements  followed,  and 
at  first  this  compact  was  made:  that  there 
should  be  no  more  consuls,  but  that  four 
miHtary  tribunes  with  consular  power  should 
be  created.  The  ambitions  of  the  plebeians 
were  not  yet  satisfied,  and  at  last  they  won, 
through  the  might  of  right,  that  which  the 
swollen  pride  of  the  patricians  had  so  long 
denied  them:  that  a  plebeian  consul  should  sit 


2i6     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

by  the  side  of  a  patrician  one,  and  should,  with 
equal  majesty,  rule  the  common  fatherland  and 
the  territory  gained  through  common  hardships. 

If  all  this  be  true,  and  if  it  be  truly  recorded 
by  all  the  most  illustrious  historians,  why 
doubt  any  longer,  O  most  prudent  Fathers? 
Or  why  seek  further  encouragement?  If  you 
have  pity  for  the  misfortunes  of  the  Romans,  if 
you  have  resolved  to  prop  the  gigantic  ruins 
with  your  patriotic  shoulders,  foUow  the 
examples  of  the  time  when  Rome  grew  from 
nothing  tiU  her  head  touched  the  very  stars. 
Heed  not  the  example  of  today,  when  she  has 
fallen  from  the  heights  of  so  great  a  fortune  into 
almost  the  lowest  depths. 

I  trust  you  do  not  doubt  that  the  city  of 
Rome  shelters  many  who  are  nobler  and  better 
than  those  who  only  boast  of  a  noble  name, 
but  who  are  a  burden  to  heaven  and  to  earth. 
I  shall  not  refuse  to  call  them  noble,  if  they  will 
act  accordingly;  but,  surely,  not  only  I,  but 
Rome  herself  denies  them  the  name  of  Romans. 
Let  us  grant  that  they  are  nobles,  and  Romans 
too.  Are  they  stiU  to  be  preferred  to  our 
ancestors,  the  defenders  of  justice,  the  pro- 
tectors of  the  down-trodden,  the  conquerors  of 
haughty  nations  and  the  builders  of  empire? 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  217 

Though  great  their  impudence,  they  will  not 
dare  to  make  this  claim.  If,  then,  our  ancestral 
Romans  yielded,  let  not  the  barons  feel  shame 
in  likewise  yielding  to  the  plebeians,  who  justly 
demand  that  they  shall  not  live  in  their  own 
city  as  if  in  exile,  and  that  they  shall  not  be 
excluded  from  pubHc  office,  as  if  they  were  a 
diseased  member  of  the  body  politic. 

In  this  regard,  it  may  behoove  us  to  remember 
what  Aristotle  says.  As  in  the  case  of  those 
who  straighten  the  plant  that  grows  one-sided, 
so  must  you  compel  these  nobles  not  only  to 
share  with  the  rest  the  senatorial  and  other 
dignities,  but  also  to  surrender  unconditionally 
and  for  a  long  period  all  the  privileges  which 
they  have  so  long  usurped  through  their  own 
arrogance  and  the  patient  suffering  of  the 
plebeians.  And  you  must  persevere  along  these 
lines  until  the  republic,  like  unto  the  one-sided 
plant,  will  have  bent  in  the  opposite  direction 
and  have  thus  returned  to  its  proper,  erect 
position. 

These  are  my  opinions,  this  I  beg  of  you  on 
bended  knee,  this  venerable  Rome  tearfully 
implores  of  you.  If  you  display  lack  of  energy 
in  restoring  her  liberty,  she  will  call  you  to 
account  before  the  tribunal  of  the  dreadful 


2i8     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Judge.  Christ  orders  you  to  re-establish  hei 
freedom,  Christ,  who  will  stand  in  your  midst  as 
you  deUberate,  that  he  may  shield  unto  the 
very  end  those  whom  he  chose  in  the  beginning 
The  apostles  Peter  and  Paul  entreat  it,  who 
inspired  the  Roman  Pontiff  to  confide  this 
sacred  duty  to  none  other  than  to  you.  Give 
heed  to  the  silent  prayers  of  these  saints,  and 
you  will  find  it  very  easy  to  spurn  the  hostile 
wishes  and  the  pressure  of  all  others.  Finally, 
consider  not  what  may  please  the  pride  of 
others,  but  only  what  best  becomes  your  own 
integrity,  and  what  will  be  of  the  greatest 
advantage  to  Rome,  to  Italy,  and  to  the  world. 
November  i8,  1351. 


NOTES 

I  .  The  four  Cardinals  to  whom  ths  letter  was 
addressed  are:  Bertrand  de  Deux,  Gui  de  Boulogne, 
Guglielmo  Curti,  and  Niccola  Capocci  (De  Sade,  III, 
157).  They  formed  a  very  wisely  appointed  commis- 
sion, each  having  had  a  practical  acquaintance  with 
Roman  affairs. 

Of  these  four  Cardinals,  Bertrand  de  Deux  was  the 
senior  member,  having  been  created  cardinal  of  St. 
Mark  by  Benedict  XII.  His  direct  acquaintance  with 
Roman  conditions  had  begun  as  early  as  1335,  when  he 
had  been  delegated  to  the  city  in  an  endeavor  to 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  219 

establish  peace  between  the  Colonna  and  the  Orsini, 
who  were  then  at  war  (cf.  Var.,  XL VIII,  n.  12).  In 
addition,  it  was  to  him  that  Clement  VI  (as  we  have 
seen)  intrusted  the  negotiations  with  Cola  di  Rienzo. 
In  fact,  he  was  considered  the  most  astute  diplomatist 
in  the  Sacred  College  (Christophe,  II,  183),  which, 
after  December  17,  1350,  consisted  of  26  members  (De 
Sade,  III,  146). 

Gui  de  Boulogne  was  bom  of  a  very  noble  family;  in 
fact,  he  was  related  to  the  royal  house  of  France,  for  his 
niece,  Jeanne  d'Auvergne,  was  married  to  King  John  of 
France  on  September  26,  1349  (De  Sade,  III,  51,  and 
n.  a;  but  cf.  the  marginal  note  on  p.  150,  which  gives 
the  date  as  September  24,  1349).  The  cardinal, 
moreover,  was  a  friend  and  relative  also  of  the  emperor 
Charles  IV.  For  these  reasons  he  was  appointed 
ambassador  plenipotentiary  to  the  king  of  Hungary,  to 
which  country  he  repaired  in  1349,  in  order  to  recon- 
ciliate  King  Louis  and  Queen  Giovanna  of  Naples.  In 
the  following  year  he  was  ordered  to  Italy  for  the 
Jubilee,  and  met  Petrarca  at  Padua  in  February,  1350. 
It  is  Gui  de  Boulogne  who  is  generally  supposed  to  be 
the  one  by  whom  Petrarca's  opinion  was  solicited  and 
to  whom  Petrarca,  whose  friendship  with  him  dated 
from  Avignon,  could  deny  nothing  (De  Sade,  III,  51, 
52,  150,  157;  more  biographical  details  are  given  in 
La  Grande  EncycL,  s.v.  Guy  d'Auvergne). 

Guglielmo  Curti,  like  Bertrand  de  Deux,  had  been 
created  Cardinal  during  the  pontificate  of  Benedict  XII 
(De  Sade,  III,  146).  For  further  information  regard- 
ing him,  see  Segre,  Studi  petrarcheschi,  pp.  216-19. 


220     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Niccola  Capocci  was  one  of  the  twelve  cardinals 
created  by  Clement  VI  on  December  17, 1350  (De  Sade, 
loc.  cit.).  He  and  Rinaldo  Orsini  (the  former  papal 
notary)  were  the  only  two  Italians  promoted  to  the 
rank  of  cardinal  on  that  occasion  {pp.  cit.,  p.  148). 
And  Petrarca  here  tells  us  that  Capocci  traced  his 
descent  from  the  Cornelii  of  Republican  Rome  (cf. 
Greg.,  VI,  263,  n.  i,  and  p.  682,  n.  2,  where  reference 
to  a  Vita  of  Capocci  is  given). 

Fracassetti  (3,  p.  292)  agrees  with  De  Sade  in 
assuming  that  Cardinal  Talleyrand  was  one  of  the 
three  judges  later  appointed  to  try  Cola  di  Rienzo, 
and  adds  that  he  was  also  one  of  this  commission  of 
four  cardinals  appointed  to  reform  the  government  of 
Rome,  in  fact,  that  Talleyrand  was  the  very  one  who 
solicited  Petrarca's  opinion.  But  previously  {ihid. , p.  99) 
Fracassetti  had  accepted  De  Sade's  list  of  four  cardinals, 
among  whom  Talleyrand  does  not  appear.  He  had 
also  accepted  De  Sade's  identification  of  Gui  de 
Boulogne  as  he  who  solicited  Petrarca's  opinion.  In 
the  midst  of  these  contradictions,  we  prefer  to  adhere 
to  the  Abbe  de  Sade,  who  in  matters  pontifical  is  gen- 
erally quite  accurately  informed. 

2.  The  word  privilege  employed  by  Petrarca  (Frac, 
II,  p.  145)  is  the  very  word  which  occurs  in  the 
document  conferring  Roman  citizenship  upon  him: 
Privilegii  laureae  receptae  a  Francisco  Petrarcha  exem- 
plar {Opera,  III,  6).  The  sentence  actually  declaring 
him  a  Roman  citizen  runs  as  follows  {ibid.,  p.  7,  toward 
the  end  of  the  document): 

"Fiu-thermore:    on   account   of   his  extraordinary 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  22 1 

intellectual  endowments,  and  on  account  of  the  well- 
known  devotion  which  he  cherishes  for  the  City  and  for 
our  state — a  devotion  to  which  common  report  and  his 
own  deeds  and  words  bear  witness — we  hereby  make, 
pronounce,  decree,  and  declare  said  Francesco  Petrarca 
a  Roman  citizen,  honoring  him  with  the  name  and  also 
with  the  privileges,  both  old  and  new,  of  Roman 
citizenship." 

3.  Petrarca  knew  whereof  he  spoke.  In  1350  he 
had  been  one  of  the  countless  thousands  who  made  the 
pilgrimage  to  the  Jubilee  city.  There  he  witnessed 
with  his  own  eyes  the  ravages  of  the  Black  Death  of 
1348,  and  the  ruins  caused  by  the  earthquakes  of  1349. 
Six  months  before  addressing  this  letter  to  the  four 
cardinals,  he  had  written  to  his  dear  friend  Socrates, 
sadly  describing  the  results  of  those  catastrophes.  The 
letter  gives  so  faithful  a  picture  of  the  terror  which 
seized  the  minds  of  men,  and  presents  so  peculiar  a 
blending  of  Petrarca's  religious  feelings  with  his 
patriotic  concept  of  Roma  caput  mundi,  that  we  cite  it 
in  full  (Fam.,  XI,  7): 

"  What  shall  I  do  first  ?  Shall  I  voice  my  laments  or 
my  fears?  Everywhere  there  is  cause  for  grief;  and 
all  the  present  woes  give  promise  of  deeper  woes  to 
come.  And  yet,  I  can  scarcely  conceive  what  worse 
evils  can  possibly  be  expected.  The  world  has  been 
destroyed  and  brought  to  an  end  by  the  madness  of 
men  and  by  the  avenging  hand  of  God.  We  have 
simk  to  such  depths  of  misery  that  no  new  species  of 
misfortune  occurs  to  the  mind.  Whosoever,  indeed, 
will  narrate  the  present  state  of  humanity  to  posterity 
— ^provided  any  descendants  survive  us — will  seem  to 
be  recounting  mere  fables.  Nor  will  it  be  right  to  wax 
indignant  if  we  should  be  given  less  credence  in  matters 


222      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

which  we  ourselves  would  not  believe  from  others.  As 
for  myself,  I  frankly  confess  that  the  present  times,  in 
which  mankind  has  experienced  every  conceivable  evil, 
have  made  me  more  prone  to  believe  many  things  of 
which  I  had  been  skeptical. 

"I  shall  pass  over  those  floods  and  hurricanes  and 
conflagrations,  whereby  cities  that  were  flourishing  one 
moment  perished  root  and  branch  the  next.  I  shall 
pass  over,  too,  those  wars  raging  throughout  the  world 
and  attended  by  endless  slaughter  of  men.  I  shall 
touch  but  lightly,  furthermore,  upon  this  heaven-sent 
plague,  unheard  of  during  the  ages.  They  are  matters 
well  known  to  all.  The  depopulated  cities  and  the 
fields  deprived  of  their  tillers  bear  witness  to  them ;  the 
face  of  the  earth,  afflicted  and  well-nigh  turned  into  a 
desert — aye  Nature  herself,  so  to  speak — sheds  tears  of 
sorrow.  These  facts,  I  repeat,  are  abundantly  known 
in  the  lands  of  the  setting  sun,  as  well  as  in  those  of  the 
rising  sun;  in  the  regions  of  Boreas,  and  in  those 
of  Auster. 

"  But  as  thou  knowest,  the  Alps  were  in  many  places 
shaken  to  their  very  foundations  recently.  Thence 
did  the  earthquake  proceed ;  and — oh  unusual  and  dire 
presage  of  the  future! — a  great  portion  of  both  Italy 
and  Germany  were  simultaneously  rocked.  Evils 
followed  which  we  cannot  recollect  without  tears,  and 
which  it  is  beyond  our  power  to  enumerate.  Very 
recently  we,  the  insignificant  few  who  seemed  to  have 
been  snatched  from  the  universal  shipwreck,  hoped 
that  the  deathly  visitation  had  abated  its  ravages,  and 
that  the  wrath  of  the  Lord  had  been  appeased.  But 
behold! — and  thou  mayest  perchance  be  still  in 
ignorance  of  this — Rome  herself  was  so  violently 
shaken  by  the  strange  trembling  that  nothing  similar 
to  it  had  ever  there  been  known  in  the  two  thousand 
years  and  more  since  the  founding  of  the  city. 

"The  massive  structures  of  the  ancients  fell  in  ruins, 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  223 

structures  that,  though  neglected  by  the  citizens, 
brought  amazement  to  the  stranger.  That  famous 
tower  called  the  Torre  dei  Conti,  unique  in  the  world, 
was  rent  by  enormous  cracks,  and  fell  apart;  and  now, 
with  its  summit  lopped  off,  it  looks  down  and  beholds 
strewn  upon  the  ground  the  glory  of  its  proud  head. 
Finally,  that  there  may  not  be  lacking  positive  proofs  of 
the  divine  wrath,  the  appearance  of  many  churches 
speaks  loud  in  testimony.  Above  all,  the  ruined 
aspect  of  a  large  portion  of  the  Church  of  St.  Paul  the 
Apostle,  and  the  fallen  roof  of  the  Church  of  St.  John 
the  Lateran  saddened  the  fervor  of  the  Jubilee  and 
caused  the  pilgrims  to  shudder.  With  the  Church  of 
St.  Peter,  however,  Nature  dealt  more  kindly. 

"These  occurrences  are  unprecedented — and  justly 
do  they  deject  the  spirits  of  many.  For,  if  the 
trembling  of  the  limbs  did  presage  the  occurrence  of 
such  dread  calamities,  what  is  not  now  threatened  by 
the  trembling  of  the  head  ?  Aye,  let  those  who  judge 
themselves  of  some  authority  fume  and  fret;  let  them 
murmur  their  disapprobation.  Nonetheless,  Rome  is 
the  head  of  the  world.  Though  grown  old  and  unkept, 
Rome  is  undoubtedly  the  head  of  all  nations.  The 
world  itself  would  not  deny  this,  could  it  speak  to  me 
with  one  voice;  and  if  the  world  should  not  acknowl- 
edge it  on  good  authority,  it  would  be  conquered  by 
written  proofs. 

"That  I  may  not,  however,  be  deemed  a  most 
malignant  prophet  of  evil  in  the  hour  of  adversity,  or 
be  thought  to  have  created  unfounded  fears,  I  shall  free 
myself  from  such  charges  by  citing  the  examples  of  the 
recent  ills  that  have  befallen  us,  and  also  by  appealing 
to  the  authority  of  Pliny,  a  writer  ranking  atnong  the 
very  highest.  To  avoid  even  the  suspicion  of  warping 
his  statements,  I  shall  quote  him  verbatim.  He  says 
{N.H.,  II,  84  [86],  200):  'Indeed,  the  evil  is  not  free 
from  complications,  nor  does  the  danger  lie  only  in  the 


224      F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

earthquake  itself,  but  it  is  a  portent  of  an  equal  or  of  a 
greater  danger.  Never  has  the  city  of  Rome  trembled 
without  its  being  the  omen  of  some  future  disaster.' 
These  are  Pliny's  very  words.  Why,  therefore,  should 
I  now  remain  silent?  Or  why  repeat  them?  I  am 
speaking  thus  to  thee  because  thou  belongest  to  those  of 
our  generation  who  dearly  love  the  Roman  republic. 
What  matters  it,  forsooth,  where  thou  didst  first  draw 
breath?  I  consider  thy  disposition  rather,  which  our 
friendship  has  rendered  quite  distinctly  Italian. 

"Wherefore,  my  dear  Socrates,  give  me  thy  close 
attention.  I  feel  deep  concern  for  the  highest  welfare 
of  the  republic,  and  sad  forebodings  cause  me  to 
tremble  not  so  much  for  Rome  as  for  the  whole  of  Italy. 
I  fear  not  so  much  the  convulsions  of  Nature,  as  indeed 
the  upheavals  of  men's  minds.  I  am  terrified  by  many 
things,  but  above  all  by  that  ancient  prophecy  uttered 
so  long  before  the  City  was  founded,  and  inserted  not 
in  any  minor  writings  but  in  the  sacred  Scriptures 
themselves.  Though  I  was  then  entirely  absorbed  in 
secular  literature,  and  not  familiar  with  the  Scriptures, 
I  confess  that  when  I  first  read  it  I  shuddered,  and  the 
blood  in  my  heart  grew  cold  and  chill.  The  utterance 
is  in  the  final  words  of  the  last  prophecy  of  Balaam.  I 
shall  quote  it  here,  to  relieve  thee  of  the  labor  of 
running  through  the  pages.  Thus,  then,  is  it  written 
(Num.  24 124):  '  They  shall  come  in  galleys  from  Italy, 
they  shall  overcome  the  Assyrians,  and  shall  waste  the 
Hebrews,  and  at  the  last  they  themselves  also  shall 
perish.' 

"Some  may  hold  that  this  prophecy  has  long  since 
been  fulfilled  in  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire;  but  I 
trust  that  this  recent  trembling  of  the  city  does  not 
portend  a  second  overthrow  of  peace  and  of  liberty. 
Do  thou,  however,  steady  thy  faltering  spirits  upon 
the  strong  foundation  of  thy  virtues  and  thy  firmness. 
In  spite  of  quaking  earth,  mayest  thou  remain  unshaken 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  225 

in  thy  secure  abode;  mayest  thou  be  like  unto  him  of 
whom  Horace  speaks  (C,  III,  3,  7-8,  tr.  by  Addison): 

Should  the  whole  frame  of  Nature  round  him  break, 
In  ruin  and  confusion  hurled, 
He,  unconquered,  would  hear  the  mighty  crack. 
And  stand  secure  amidst  a  falUng  world. 

"I  wrote  this  letter  to  thee  while  I  was  still  at  Padua, 
but  it  was  delayed  in  sending  as  late  as  today  for 
want  of  a  messenger.  It  has  pleased  me  to  dispatch  it 
to  thee  from  this  city,  for  no  other  reason  than  to 
humor  this  mutual  friend  of  ours,  who  refused  to  go  to 
thee  without  bearing  a  letter  from  me.  For  that 
matter,  there  was  no  need  of  either  messenger  or  letter, 
since  I  myself  am  just  about  to  follow  him.  When, 
therefore,  thou  wilt  read  this  letter,  know  that  I  am 
already  near.  Thou  wilt  give  me  pleasure  indeed,  if 
thou  shouldst  come  to  meet  me  at  the  Fountain  of  the 
Sorgue.     Remember  me  always,  and  farewell. 

At  Piacenza,  June  11,  13  51." 

4.  The  point  which  Petrarca  wishes  to  emphasize  is 
that  it  was  but  natural  for  Capocci  to  champion  the 
rights  of  the  defenseless  plebeians  against  the  nobles. 
He  has  already  stated  that  Capocci  was  a  native  Roman 
boasting  a  descent  from  the  Cornelii.  Hence,  Capocci 
inherited  the  native,  Italian  antagonism  to  the  foreign- 
born  nobles,  who,  as  Petrarca  has  already  said  time  and 
again,  hailed  from  the  valley  of  Spoleto,  or  from  the 
banks  of  the  Rhine,  or  from  some  other  obscure 
corner  of  the  world. 

5.  Gregorovius  keenly  observes  (VI,  330-31): 

"Petrarch's  views  deserve  serious  attention.  If  he 
considered  the  Roman  nobles  in  the  light  of  foreign 
immigrants,  he  simply  expressed  the  historic  origin  of 
feudalism  and  its  antagonism  to  the  Latin  character. 


226     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

It  was  indeed  a  German  institution,  which  had  been 
transplanted  by  invasion  to  Latin  soil.  The  struggle 
of  Italian  citizenship  in  the  republics  against  the  feudal 
nobility,  who  were  almost  all  of  German  origin,  con- 
sequently arose  out  of  a  native  and  national  contra- 
diction, and  these  democracies  still  traced  their  freedom 
from  the  ancient  right  of  Roman  citizenship.  About 
the  time  of  Petrarch  the  victory  of  the  Latin  principle 
over  German  feudalism  was  almost  everywhere  com- 
plete, and  even  now  Italy  is  an  absolutely  democratic 
country,  where  the  contrast  between  the  nobles  and 
the  middle  class  is  only  faintly  perceptible." 

6.  Lucan,  viii.  354-56  (tr.  by  Rowe). 

7.  A  play  on  words,  connecting  the  word  cardinals 
with  the  very  literal  meaning  of  the  Latin  cardo,  the 
hinge  of  a  door  or  gate. 

8.  Petrarca  is  mistaken  about  the  praenomen  of  this 
Torquatus,  which  should  be  Titus.  The  story  is  given 
in  Livy,  viii.  5,  7. 

9.  The  passage  is  reminiscent  of  Cicero,  Cat.,  ii. 
9,  19. 

10.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  point  out  that  in  this 
letter  passage  after  passage  harps  back  to  similar  lines 
in  Letter  Var.,  XL  VIII. 

11.  The  Petrarca  original  reads  (Frac,  II,  p.  151): 
deserto  rure,  inopi  victu  Romam  et  obsidione  consulem 
romanum  atque  exerciium  liberaret.  Fracassetti  trans- 
lates (3,  p.  91):  mosse  a  liber  are  il  console  e  Roma 
dall'assedio  e  dalla  sconfiUa.  We  have  altered  the 
punctuation  of  the  Latin  by  placing  the  comma  after 
inopi,  thus  translating  the  first  three  words  together, 
"abandoning  his  meager  farm."  In  fact,  Rome  was 
not  under  siege  at  the  time,  and  the  ancient  historian 


THE  FALL  OF  COLA  227 

dearly  states  that  Cincinnatus  "freed  from  a  siege  a 
Roman  consul  and  a  Roman  army"  (Livy,  iii.  26,  27). 

12,  Sallust,  lugurtha,  64,  i:  superhia,  commune 
nobilitatis  malum.  Fracassetti  (3,  p.  92)  places  his 
come  narra  Sallustio  after  the  statement  that  pride  is 
not  a  new  disease  in  the  state.  The  impression 
received,  therefore,  is  that  this  also  is  a  quotation  from 
Sallust,  who  merely  says,  however,  that  pride  is  the 
evil  common  to  all  nobles. 

13.  Livy,  ix.  46,  8,  9,  12. 


CHAPTER  XII 

The  following  letter  is  the  second  which 
Petrarca  addressed  to  the  commission  of  four 
cardinals.  It  is,  so  to  speak,  a  postscript  to 
the  preceding  letter,  being  written  but  one 
week  later,  and  naturally  treating  of  the  same 
subject-matter. 

TO  THE  FOUR  CARDINALS  APPOINTED 

TO    REFORM    THE    GOVERNMENT 

OF  ROME 

{Fam.,  XI,  17) 

I  know  full  well,  excellent  and  most  worthy- 
Fathers,  that,  in  judging  between  circumspect 
humility  and  unbridled  arrogance,  you  stand  in 
no  need  of  advice  from  an  insignificant  mortal 
like  myself  in  order  to  render  a  just  decision. 
But  it  pleases  me  to  speak  my  mind  on  a  ques- 
tion affecting  the  welfare  of  our  common 
country,  and  to  shoulder  my  manly  share  of  the 
burden.^  Though  I  cannot  contribute  deeds,  I 
shall  contribute  at  least  my  pen  to  the  defense 
of  Uberty.  I  shall  speak,  therefore,  from  purest 
conviction  and  in  obedience  to  the  dictates  of 

228 


PETRARCA  WRITES  TO  COMMISSION     229 

my  conscience,  seeking  neither  glory  nor  praise 
from  my  words.  I  shall  be  quite  unconcerned 
as  to  whom*  my  language  may  goad,  provided  it 
does  not  offend  the  sense  of  justice.  It  is,  no 
doubt,  a  cruel  necessity  to  rise  against  the 
mighty  ones  of  this  earth,  especially  when  these 
are  dear  to  one.  Still,  only  he  can  deem 
himself  a  lover  of  truth  who  values  it  more 
highly  than  friends  and  all  other  possessions. 

And  so,  thrusting  aside  my  affection  for  those 
nobles,  who  are  very  dear  to  me  and  whom  I 
have  long  cherished,^  I  ask  of  these  foreign-bom 
tyrants  whence  they  have  assumed  such  arro- 
gant haughtiness  in  a  foreign  city?  Three  of 
you,  may,  perhaps,  wonder  at  this  question,  but 
the  fourth  will  understand  my  meaning,  I  am 
sure.^  If  the  barons  laugh  my  charge  to  scorn, 
hoping  that  time  has  buried  the  origin  of  both 
houses  in  obUvion,  Rome  and  Italy  will  both 
testify  to  the  truth  of  my  statement. 

Astonishing  and  insufferable  pride!  Wel- 
comed into  the  city  as  exiled  strangers,  they 
have  long  excluded  the  ancient  citizens  from 
all  participation  in  the  pubHc  offices,  and  they 
will  continue  forever  to  exclude  them,  if  not 
checked  by  the  right  hand  of  the  Supreme 
Pontiff  and  by  the  measures  that  you  will 


230     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

adopt.  Our  sins  may,  perhaps,  have  rendered 
us  unworthy  of  your  assistance;  but,  assuredly, 
the  home  of  the  apostles  deserves  to  be  freed 
from  the  violence  of  tyrants;  the  shrines  of  the 
saints  deserve  to  be  snatched  from  the  clutches 
of  the  plunderer,  and  the  soil  consecrated  by  the 
lives  of  the  martyrs  deserves  not  to  be  defiled 
by  the  blood  of  its  citizens.  But  none  of  these 
things  can  come  to  pass,  unless  you  repress  the 
frenzy  of  the  tyrants,  and  unless  you  bring 
timely  aid  to  the  wretched  population. 

There  are  some  in  this  world  who  voluntarily 
put  an  end  to  their  wrong-doing,  and  return  to 
the  straight  path,  even  though  their  repentance 
may  be  somewhat  tardy;  but  there  are  some 
who  never  correct  the  error  of  their  ways  unless 
compelled  to  do  so.  It  is  conducive  to  the 
well-being  of  the  latter  class,  therefore,  to 
employ  violence.  Most  praiseworthy  indeed  is 
it  for  a  man  to  cultivate  virtue  and  to  flee  from 
vice  of  his  own  accord;  the  next  most  com- 
mendable thing  is  to  do  so  from  compulsion. 

Bring  force  to  bear,  then,  upon  these  unwilling 
barons.  Heed  not  their  cries  of  protest,  but 
wrench  this  baleful  tyranny  from  their  grasp. 
Not  only  admit  the  common  people  of  Rome  to 
a  share  in  the  public  honors,  but  wrest  from  the 


PETRARCA  WRITES  TO  COMMISSION     231 

present  unworthy  incumbents  the  office  of 
senator  which  they  have  always  administered 
most  abominably.  Even  if  the  barons  were 
citizens,  and  good  citizens,  they  could  lay  claim 
to  but  half  the  offices.  As  matters  stand,  they 
have  conducted  themselves  in  such  wise  as  to  be 
unworthy  both  of  the  city  which  they  destroy, 
and  of  the  fellowship  of  the  citizens  whom  they 
crush.  How  much  more  unworthy,  then,  are 
they  of  filling  the  highest  office! 

Pitiful,  indeed,  is  their  boast  of  noble  birth 
and  of  wealth,  relying  upon  which  they  strut 
about  in  their  pride,  though  devoid  of  even  a 
leaven  of  virtue.  It  would  take  many  pages  to 
prove  that  the  ancient  Romans,  who  were 
endowed  with  a  matchless  and  extraordinary 
virtue,  were  not  successful  in  excluding  the 
plebeians  from  office.  It  would  be  beyond  my 
purpose  to  trace  the  particulars  in  this  place. 
To  state  the  question  in  its  briefest  compass,  I 
shall  say  that,  in  almost  every  instance  of  a 
struggle  for  poHtical  office,  the  proud  nobles 
were  conquered  by  the  lowly  plebeians. 

I  expounded  this  truth  at  greater  length  in  the 
detailed  letter  which  I  recently  wrote  to  you. 
If  you  will  deign  to  give  to  that  letter  your 
undivided  attention  for  one  hour,  I  have  hopes 


232      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

that  you  will  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  our 
ancestors,  and  that  you  will  decree  the  salvation 
of  the  repubHc  and  of  that  fold  especially  dear 
to  Jesus  Christ;  for,  though  He  had  appointed 
trusty  shepherds  to  keep  watch  over  it,  seeing 
them  terror-stricken  at  the  fierceness  of  the 
wolves,  He  himself  (as  you  know)  returned  in 
person  without  hesitation  to  suffer  for  the 
second  time  the  passion  of  the  cross. 
November  24,  13  51. 


NOTES 

1.  Compare  Livy,  Praefatio,  3;  and  letter  Var., 
XXXVIII,  n.  10. 

2.  This  is  an  unmistakable  reference  to  the  members 
of  the  Colonna  family.  Petrarca  seems  to  have  had 
some  misgivings  as  to  the  effect  of  the  preceding  letter 
upon  the  commissioners,  all  of  whom,  being  cardinals 
and  residents  of  Avignon,  had  known  personally 
Cardinal  Giovanni  Colonna  and  other  members  of  that 
family.  Everyone,  of  course,  knew  of  Petrarca's 
intimacy  with  the  Colonna,  and  hence  our  patriot  here 
reiterates  his  love  for  the  Colonna  as  individuals,  and 
his  unavoidable  hatred  for  them  as  members  of  a 
foreign  and  invading  feudal  order. 

3.  The  fourth  member  referred  to  is  Niccola  Capocci, 
of  course.    See  Fam.,  XI,  16,  n.  i. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

The  commission  of  cardinals  appointed  to 
reform  the  government  of  Rome  did  not  accom- 
phsh  anything  in  spite  of  Petrarca's  suggestions. 
Their  dehberations  continued  to  be  held  with 
due  gravity  and  solemnity,  while  the  Romans 
patiently  waited  for  the  solution  of  their 
pressing  problems.  At  last,  wearied  by  the 
inaction  of  the  responsible  authorities,  the 
Romans  faced  the  situation  squarely,  and  pro- 
vided their  own  solution.  On  December  26, 
13  51,  they  gathered  at  the  Church  of  S.  Maria 
Maggiore  and  declared  as  the  absolute  head 
and  master  of  the  city  the  plebeian  Giovanni 
Cerroni.  This  decisive  act  reheved  at  once  the 
deep  embarrassment  both  of  the  cardinals  and 
of  the  Pope;  and  though  the  Romans  had  not 
seen  the  two  letters  of  Petrarca,  it  is  evident  to 
the  reader  that  their  solution  was  quite  in 
accord  with  Petrarca's  suggestions. 

The  children  of  Mars,  however,  continued  to 
be  as  unruly  and  as  warlike  as  ever.  Cerroni 
was  shortly  obhged  to  flee  from  the  city,  and 
his  flight  ushered  in  anew  the  party  strifes  of 
Colonna  and  Orsini.  In  sheer  desperation,  and 
233 


234     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

because  they  recalled  the  relatively  peaceful 
and  glorious  days  of  1347,  the  Romans  at  last 
gave  the  control  of  the  city  to  Francesco 
Baroncelli,  second  Tribune  of  Rome  (September 
14,  1353).  But  what  of  Cola  di  Rienzo? 
What  had  now  become  of  the  former  idol  of  the 
populace  ? 

During  many  of  those  months  of  turmoil, 
Cola  had  been  living  the  quiet  Hfe  of  a  monk  on 
Monte  MaieUa,  in  the  company  of  the  mystic 
and  fanatic  band  known  as  the  Fraticelli. 
Finally,  spurred  on  by  dreams  of  power  and  by 
the  prophecies  of  the  hermit  Fra  Angelo,  he 
journeyed  to  Prague,  the  capital  of  the 
Bohemian  king  and  emperor  of  the  Holy  Roman 
Empire.  His  intention  was  to  place  before  the 
emperor  schemes  for  estabUshing  the  claims  of 
the  empire  independent  of  the  pretentions  of 
the  papacy.  In  short,  Cola  had  become  a 
Ghibelline.  The  Bavarian  claimant  to  the 
empire — the  "inveterate  enemy  of  the  evil  days 
gone  by" — ^would  have  welcomed  Cola — "the 
on  of  BeHal" — with  open  arms.  But  unfor- 
tunately for  Cola,  Lewis  the  Bavarian  was  dead, 
sand  Charles  IV  was  now  without  a  rival. 
Charles  IV,  it  will  be  remembered,  had  sub- 
mitted in  all  things  to  the  demands  of  the 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       235 

church.  To  assure  himself  of  the  support  of 
the  church  m  his  candidacy  for  the  empire,  he 
had  promised  at  Avignon  to  be  the  humble 
servant  of  the  Pope.  After  the  consummation 
of  this  bargain,  he  had  promised  to  enter  Rome 
for  the  coronation,  to  leave  the  City  of  the 
Apostles  on  the  very  same  day,  and  never  again 
to  enter  the  territory  of  the  church.  The  eagle 
of  the  GhibeUines  had  by  this  time  become  the 
tame  and  docile  dove  of  the  Guelphs. 

When,  therefore.  Cola  reached  the  barbarian 
city  of  Prague  (in  July,  1350),  the  scholarly 
disposed  emperor  decided  to  give  him  an 
audience,  spurred  chiefly  by  a  sense  of  curiosity 
to  behold  the  ex-Tribime  by  whom  he  had  been 
so  boldly  summoned  three  years  before.  Cola 
now  began  to  write  to  the  emperor,  to  the 
chancellor  of  the  empire,  and  to  the  archbishop 
of  Prague  those  lengthy  letters  of  self-defense 
to  which  allusion  has  aheady  been  made.  The 
strongly  Catholic  emperor,  who  grew  increas- 
ingly alarmed  at  Cola's  bold  language,  finally 
cast  him  into  prison,  and  sent  the  news  thereof 
to  his  sponsor  at  Avignon.  Clement  VI  at  once 
began  to  urge  the  emperor  to  surrender  Cola. 
In  a  letter  of  August  17,  1350  (Theiner,  II,  No. 
200),  the  Pope  begs  Arnest  von  Parbubitz,  the 


236     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

archbishop  of  Prague,  either  to  send  Cola  to 
Avignon  immediately,  or  else  to  be  sure  to  keep 
close  guard  over  him.  On  February  i,  1351, 
Pope  Clement  again  writes  to  the  emperor 
{ibid.,  No.  204),  rehearsing  the  well-known  fact 
that  Cola  had  been  declared  a  heretic  by 
Cardinal  Bertrand  de  Deux  and  by  Annibaldo 
di  Ceccano,  bishop  of  Tusculum.  The  tone  of 
this  letter  is  one  of  reproach  and  complaint, 
because,  in  spite  of  repeated  demands.  Cola  had 
not  yet  been  dispatched  to  Avignon.  Cola's 
continued  residence  in  the  North  caused  the 
Pope  serious  apprehensions  regarding  the  bane- 
ful influence  of  Cola's  reHgious  and  political 
preachings.  As  Gregorovius  says  (VI,  346): 
"The  Tribune  in  chains  at  Prague  was  more 
dangerous  to  the  Papacy  than  he  had  been  when 
at  the  height  of  his  power  on  the  Capitol."  On 
February  24,  1352,  consequently,  the  Pope 
wrote  a  general  letter  to  the  archbishops  and 
the  bishops  of  Germany  and  of  Bohemia 
(Theiner,  II,  No.  217),  instructing  them  to 
inform  their  flocks  of  Cola's  heresy  and  to  warn 
them  to  shun  him  accordingly.  Finally,  by  brief 
of  March  24,  1352  {ibid.,  No.  218),  Clement  VI 
gave  very  specific  instructions  for  the  surrender 
of  Cola.    His  letter  ran  as  follows: 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       237 

Clement,  Bishop,  etc.,  to  his  very  dear  son  in  Christ, 
the  illustrious  Charles,  king  of  the  Romans,  greetings. 

In  a  separate  communication,  we  are  sending 
instructions  to  our  venerable  brother  Amest,  arch- 
bishop of  Prague,  to  the  effect  that,  without  causing 
any  disturbance,  he  be  good  enough  to  deliver  Cola  di 
Rienzo,  the  Roman  citizen  condemned  of  heresy,  to  our 
intimate  acquaintances  and  bearers  of  the  present, 
namely,  to  our  venerable  brother  Giovanni,  bishop  of 
Spoleto,  and  to  our  beloved  son  Roger  de  Moulinneuf , 
Master  of  the  Guards,  and  to  Hugue  de  Charlus,  in 
order  that  said  Cola  di  Rienzo  be  conducted  before  us. 
Therefore,  we  earnestly  beg  thy  Serenity  that,  in  so  far 
as  in  thee  lies,  thou  mayest  lend  thy  efficient  aid  to  said 
archbishop  in  order  that  he  may  successfully  fulfil  our 
instructions  in  this  regard. 

Given  at  Villeneuve  (-les- Avignon),  in  the  diocese  of 
Avignon,  on  the  24th  of  March,  and  in  the  tenth  year 
of  our  Pontificate. 

Cola  di  Rienzo  himseK  was  glad  of  the  coming 
change.  His  transfer  to  Avignon  would  release 
him  from  the  cold  and  damp  dimgeon  in  which 
he  had  been  confined  for  months,  and  would 
offer  him  the  long-wished-for  opportunity  for 
defending  himself  in  person  against  the  charge 
of  heresy.  His  journey  from  the  representative 
of  the  temporal  to  that  of  the  spiritual  power 
was  one  continued  ovation.  The  anonymous 
biographer  of  Cola  condenses  into  one  short 


238     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

chapter  Cola's  journey  to  Avignon,  his  trial 
and  his  acquittal.  The  chapter  is  as  follows 
(Vita,  11,13): 

After  some  time  Cola  asked  it  as  a  favor  of  the 
emperor  that  he  might  go  to  Avignon,  in  order  to  appear 
before  the  Pope  and  to  submit  proofs  that  he  was 
neither  a  heretic  nor  a  Patarine.  The  emperor  was 
very  loath  that  he  should  go.  But  in  the  end  he 
condescended  to  humor  his  desire.  Cola  di  Rienzo  was 
wont  to  say:  "Most  Serene  Emperor,  I  go  willingly 
before  the  Holy  Father.  Therefore,  provided  it  is  not 
under  compulsion  that  you  send  me,  you  will  not  be 
breaking  your  promise  to  me."  [In  the  chapter  of  the 
Vita  preceding  this,  it  is  said  that  the  emperor  had 
reassured  Cola  not  to  entertain  any  fears  whatsoever 
regarding  his  powerful  enemies.]  On  his  journey,  the 
inhabitants  of  all  the  coimtries  through  which  he  passed 
rose  up  in  great  commotion,  and,  gathering  in  multi- 
tudes, went  forth  to  meet  him  with  much  din  and 
uproar.  They  took  hold  of  him,  and  they  said  that 
they  wished  to  rescue  him  from  the  hands  of  the  Pope. 
They  did  not  wish  him  to  go  to  Avignon.  To  all  he 
answered  and  said:  "I  go  willingly,  and  not  under 
compulsion."  He  would  thank  them,  and  thus  he 
passed  from  city  to  city.  Throughout  his  journey 
solemn  honors  were  paid  unto  him.  When  the  diflFerent 
peoples  beheld  him,  they  marveled;  they  accom- 
panied him.  And  after  this  fashion  did  he  reach 
Avignon. 

When  Cola  di  Rienzo  reached  Avignon,  he  spoke  in 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       239 

the  presence  of  the  Pope.  He  presented  his  defense, 
that  he  was  not  a  Patarine,  and  that  therefore  he  was 
not  affected  by  the  sentence  [of  excommunication] 
passed  upon  him  by  the  Cardinal  [sc,  Annibaldo  di 
Ceccano]  and  by  Messer  Bruno  [sc,  Bertrand  de  Deux, 
at  one  time  Bishop  of  Embrun].  He  expressed  his 
desire  to  be  submitted  to  a  trial.  At  these  words  the 
Pope  remained  silent.  Cola  di  Rienzo  was  imprisoned 
in  a  strong  and  spacious  tower;  a  chain  of  suitable 
dimensions  weighted  his  foot.  The  chain  was  fastened 
to  the  vaulted  ceiling  of  the  tower  room.  There  Cola 
remained,  clothed  in  robes  of  tolerable  decency.  He 
had  many  books;  he  had  his  Livy,  his  Histories  of 
Rome,  the  Bible,  and  many  other  books.  He  studied 
incessantly.  Food  in  great  abundance  was  given  to 
him  from  the  kitchens  of  the  Pope,  food  which  was 
administered  to  him  out  of  charity  and  in  the  name  of 
God.  His  deeds  were  examined,  and  he  was  found  to 
be  a  faithful  Christian.  Then  the  trial  was  annulled, 
and  the  sentence  of  Messer  Bruno  and  of  the  Cardinal 
di  Ceccano  was  revoked,  and  he  was  absolved.  And  he 
fell  into  the  good  graces  of  the  Pope,  and  was  saved. 

The  condensed  story  of  the  mediaeval 
biographer  has  caused  us  to  anticipate  some- 
what. To  return  to  Cola,  it  appears  that  he 
was  surrendered  to  the  papal  emissaries  in  July, 
1352  (Greg.,  VI,  350).  Since  the  distance 
between  Prague  and  Avignon  was  much  greater 
than  that  between  Rome  and  Avignon,  we 


240     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

calculate  that  if  Cola  left  in  the  early  days  of 
July  he  must  have  reached  Avignon  in  the  early 
days  of  August.  A  few  days  later,  perhaps  a 
whole  week  later,  Petrarca  wrote  from  Vaucluse 
a  long  letter  {Fam.,  XIII,  6),  in  which  he 
described  to  his  friend  Francesco  Nelli  both  the 
arrival  of  Cola  and  the  strange  rumors  that 
were  being  spread  concerning  him. 


TO  FRANCESCO,  PRIOR  OF  THE  HOLY 
APOSTLES 

{Fam.,  XIII,  6) 

What  dost  thou  expect  to  find  in  this  letter  ?^ 
Thinkest  thou  that  I  shall  complete  the  mourn- 
ful, and,  at  the  same  time,  ridiculous  tale  of  my 
last  letter  to  thee?""  To  be  sure,  there  is  just 
now  nothing  of  greater  importance  to  do;  or 
rather,  there  are  many  such  tasks,  but  lack  of 
time  forbids  me  to  apply  myself  to  those  of 
greater  importance.^  What  httle  time  I  have 
is  not  at  my  own  disposal,  but  is  clogged  with 
truly  remarkable  interruptions.  Even  I  am 
constantly  on  the  go;  I  find  myself  in  the  midst 
of  turmoil  and  of  confusion;  I  am  here  and 
there  at  once,  with  the  result  that  I  never  really 
get  anywhere.    This  is  the  familiar  evil  attend- 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       241 

ing  all  wanderers.  But  recently  I  departed 
from  Babylon  and  came  to  a  halt  at  the  Foun- 
tain of  the  Sorgue,  the  well-known  refuge  from 
the  storms  which  beset  me. 

Here  I  await  some  traveling  companions  and 
the  end  of  autumn,  or  at  least  that  season 
described  by  Vergil,^  when  "the  days  are 
shorter,  and  the  heat  milder."  In  the  mean- 
time, therefore,  that  my  stay  in  the  country 
may  not  be  altogether  fruitless,  I  am  bringing 
together  the  scattered  fragments  of  previous 
meditations.  My  daily  endeavor  is,  if  pos- 
sible, to  add  a  little  to  the  larger  works  which  I 
have  in  hand,  or  to  put  the  fiDoishing  touches  to 
some  of  the  minor  ones.  Learn  from  this  letter, 
then,  the  task  which  I  have  set  myself  for  today. 

Poetry,  a  divine  gift  bestowed  upon  only  a 
few,  begiQS  to  be  the  common  property  of  the 
mob.  This  is  putting  it  mildly,  for  I  might  well 
say  that  poetry  is  now  desecrated  and  degraded. 
There  is  nothing  which  stirs  greater  wrath 
within  me;  and  if  I  have  come  to  know  thy 
tastes,  my  friend,  I  am  sure  that  thou  too  canst 
in  no  way  tolerate  such  an  afifront.  Never  at 
Athens  or  at  Rome,  never  in  the  times  of 
Homer  or  of  Vergil,  was  there  so  much  prattle 
about  poets  as  there  is  today  along  the  banks  of 


242     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

the  Rhone.  And  yet  I  am  positive  that  in  no 
place  and  at  no  time  was  there  such  profound 
ignorance  of  the  subject  of  poetry.  Appease 
thy  wrath  with  laughter,  please;  and  learn  to 
be  merry  in  the  midst  of  sorrow.  ^ 

There  recently  came  to  the  Curia,  or  rather, 
he  did  not  come,  but  was  led  here  a  prisoner. 
Cola  di  Rienzo,  formerly  the  widely  feared 
Tribune  of  Rome,  today  the  most  wretched  of 
men.  He  has  now  touched  the  very  lowest 
depths  of  misfortune;  for,  though  he  is 
extremely  miserable,  I  know  not  whether  he  is 
by  any  means  to  be  pitied.  He  might  have  died 
a  glorious  death  on  the  Capitol;  but  he  has 
submitted  to  the  chains  first  of  a  Bohemian, 
and  then  of  a  Limousin — to  his  everlasting  dis- 
grace and  in  mockery  of  the  Roman  name  and 
repubhc.^ 

The  constant  praises  and  exhortations  in 
which  my  pen  was  so  busily  engaged  are  per- 
haps better  known  than  I  should  wish  at 
present.  I  loved  his  virtues,  praised  his  aims, 
and  marveled  at  the  courage  of  the  man.  I 
congratulated  Italy;  I  foresaw  the  empire  of 
the  bountiful  city,  and  anticipated  the  peace  of 
the  entire  world.  I  could  not  repress  the  joyous 
feelings  springing  from  such  numerous  causes, 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       243 

and  it  seemed  to  me  that  I  shotdd  partake  of  his 
glory,  if  I  should  goad  him  on  in  his  course. 
And,  indeed,  his  messengers  and  letters  to  me 
bear  witness  that  he  esteemed  my  words  most 
potent  incentives.  The  heat  of  my  enthusiasm 
became  more  intense  thereat.  I  racked  my 
brain  to  devise  means  whereby  I  might  the 
more  inflame  his  already  glowing  spirit.  I 
knew  full  well  that  nothing  enkindles  a  generous 
heart  more  readily  than  praises  and  the  pros- 
pects of  glory;  hence  I  constantly  introduced 
words  of  high  praise,  which  to  many  appeared 
extravagant,  but  which  to  me  seemed  justly 
deserved.  I  lauded  the  deeds  already  per- 
formed, and  urged  him  to  the  performance  of 
others. 

There  are  extant  several  letters  which  I  wrote 
to  him,  letters  which  even  today  it  does  not 
displease  me  to  have  written.  I  am  not 
accustomed  to  predict  the  future;  and  would 
that  he,  too,  had  not  been  addicted  to  prophecy! 
Verily,  the  deeds  which  he  was  performing  and 
which  he  gave  promise  of  performing  at  the 
time  when  I  wrote,  were  most  deserving  not 
only  of  my  praise  and  admiration,  but  of  that 
of  the  whole  human  race.  I  hardly  think  that 
all  those  letters  should  be  destroyed  for  this  one 


244     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

false  step :  that  he  chose  to  Kve  in  shame  rather 
than  to  die  in  glory.  But  it  is  a  waste  of  time 
to  dehberate  on  the  impossible.  Though  great 
should  be  my  desire  to  destroy  them,  I  am  now 
powerless.  They  have  gone  forth  into  the 
world,  and  are  no  longer  subject  to  my  control. 

But  to  resume  my  story.  Rienzo  entered 
the  Curia,  humbled  and  despised,  he  who  once 
had  made  the  wicked  of  this  world  to  tremble 
and  to  fear,  and  who  had  filled  the  upright  with 
the  most  joyful  hopes  and  expectations.  Once 
upon  a  time,  he  was  attended  by  the  whole 
people  of  Rome,  and  in  his  train  followed  the 
princes  of  the  ItaHc  cities.  Today  the  unhappy 
man  proceeded  on  his  way,  hemmed  in  on  this 
side  and  on  that  by  two  guards,  while  the  rabble 
eagerly  rushed  forward  to  gaze  upon  the  face 
of  him  whose  illustrious  name  they  had  heard  of 
only.  He  was  being  sent  to  the  Roman  Pontiff 
by  the  king  of  the  Romans!  Oh  strange  trafl&c 
indeed!'  I  do  not  dare  commit  to  writing  the 
thoughts  which  now  rush  to  my  brain.  Not 
even  this  much  did  I  intend  should  escape  me; 
and  so  I  shall  continue  with  the  story  which  I 
began. 

Upon  his  arrival,  then,  the  Supreme  Pontiff 
immediately   appointed   three  princes   of   the 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       245 

church  to  try  his  case,  with  instructions  to  dis- 
cover the  most  suitable  punishment  for  him  who 
desired  the  freedom  of  the  republic*  O  tem- 
pora,  0  mores!^  Alas,  how  often  is  it  necessary 
in  our  age,  to  utter  these  words  of  exclamation! 
In  a  certain  sense,  I  admit  that  no  penalty 
is  too  severe  for  Cola;  firstly,  because  he  did 
not  persevere  in  his  aims  as  steadfastly  as 
he  should  have,  and  as  the  condition  and  the 
needs  of  the  state  demanded;  and  secondly, 
because,  having  once  declared  himself  Uberty's 
champion,  he  should  not  have  permitted  the 
enemies  of  liberty  to  depart  in  arms,  when  he 
could  have  crushed  them  all  at  a  single  blow,  an 
opportimity  which  fortune  had  never  offered  to 
any  ruler.  Fatal  and  dreadful  darkness,  which 
often  obscures  the  sight  of  men  as  they  struggle 
over  projects  of  supreme  importance!" 

He  was  wont  to  style  himself  "severe  and 
clement."  Forsooth,  if  he  had  determined  to 
put  into  practice  only  the  second  part  of  this 
title,  and  not  that  other  part  which  was  quite 
necessary  on  account  of  the  disease  of  the 
repubHc;  if,  I  say,  he  had  determined  to  display 
only  mercy  to  the  traitors  of  their  country,  he 
should  at  least,  in  sparing  their  Hves,  have 
deprived  them  of  all  means  for  working  injury, 


246      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

and  especially  should  he  have  driven  them  from 
their  frowning  strongholds.  In  this  way,  those 
who  had  previously  been  enemies  of  Rome 
would  have  become  her  citizens;  or,  at  any  rate, 
those  who  had  been  a  source  of  constant  fear 
would  have  become  an  object  of  contempt.  I 
remember  having  written  to  him  a  well- 
pondered  letter  on  that  occasion."  Had  he 
heeded  its  substance,  the  republic  would  now 
be  in  a  far  different  condition.  Rome  would 
not  be,  today,  the  slave  of  others,  nor  he  a 
prisoner. 

I  cannot  forgive  this,  nor  do  I  see  how  his 
subsequent  actions  can  very  well  be  excused. 
Although  he  had  assumed  the  protection  of  all 
good  citizens,  and  the  extermination  of  all 
wicked  ones,  it  was  only  after  a  short  interval 
that  he  unexpectedly  changed  in  purpose  and  in 
manners,  began  to  favor  the  wicked,  and  to 
place  in  these  his  whole  trust,  greatly  to  the 
dismay  and  the  detriment  of  the  upright. 
Rienzo  himself  may  perhaps  know  the  motives 
of  his  actions,  for  I  have  not  seen  him  since; 
but  surely  the  excuse  for  a  misdeed,  though  it 
may  always  be  readily  framed  by  a  man  of 
eloquence,  never  can  have  the  ring  of  truth. 
Would  at  least  that  he  had  not  chosen  the  very 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       247 

lowest  of  the  low!  Once  again  did  I  write  to 
him  on  the  subject,  and  at  a  time  when  the 
republic  had  not  yet  fallen,  but  was  already- 
tottering." 

But  enough.  I  am  speaking  with  too  great 
ardor,  and  I  dwell  in  sadness  (as  thou  seest)  on 
the  different  steps  of  my  story.  And  naturally 
so,  for  I  had  placed  in  that  man  my  last  hope 
for  the  Hberties  of  Italy.  I  had  long  known 
him,  and  cherished  him;  but  when  he  began  to 
essay  that  most  glorious  enterprise,  I  allowed 
myseK  to  love  and  to  worship  him  beyond  all 
other  mortals.  And,  therefore,  the  more  I 
hoped  in  the  past,  the  more  do  I  now  grieve  at 
the  destruction  of  those  hopes.  I  frankly 
confess  that,  whatever  the  end  of  it  all  may  be, 
even  now  I  cannot  help  admiring  his  glorious 
beginning. 

But  to  return  once  more  to  my  story.  He 
came,  but  not  in  chains.  This  alone  was  lack- 
ing to  his  pubUc  disgrace;  as  for  the  rest,  he 
was  so  carefully  guarded  that  there  was  no  hope 
of  escape.  As  soon  as  he  reached  the  city  gate, 
the  poor  unfortunate  inquired  whether  I  was  in 
attendance  at  the  Curia,  hoping,  perhaps,  that 
I  might  be  of  some  assistance  to  him  (which, 
to  my  knowledge,  I  cannot  be),  or  else  simply 


248     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

because  he  was  reminded  of  an  old  friendship 
formerly  contracted  in  that  very  city.^^  Now, 
therefore,  the  life  of  that  man  in  whose  hands 
rested  the  safety  and  the  welfare  of  so  many 
nations,  hangs  upon  the  nod  of  strangers.  His 
life  and  his  name  are  alike  at  stake.  Do  not  be 
surprised  at  the  outcome;  men  are  now  waver- 
ing in  their  opinions,  and  thou  wilt  be  sure  to 
hear  one  of  two  sentences:  either  that  he  has 
been  deprived  of  all  legal  rights,  or  else  that  he 
has  been  condemned  to  death.^''  The  clay  of 
any  mortal  creature,  even  of  the  most  sacred 
and  pure,  can  indeed  be  destroyed;  but  virtue 
fears  neither  death  nor  reproach.  Virtue  is  in- 
vulnerable, and  survives  uninjured  all  calumny 
and  attack. 

And  oh  that  he  had  not  stained  his  honor  by 
his  own  lethargy  and  change  of  purpose!  He 
would  have  nothing  to  fear  from  the  sentence 
pending  over  him  except  physical  injury.  And 
yet,  even  today  his  fame  is  not  in  danger  among 
those  who  judge  of  right  and  of  wrong,  of  glory 
and  of  shame,  not  according  to  the  general 
opinion  but  according  to  certain  and  more 
reliable  tests.  His  fame  rests  secure  with  those 
who  measure  the  greatness  of  men  by  consider- 
ing the  noble  quaUties  they  have  displayed, 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       249 

and  not  the  success  which  has  attended  their 
undertakings. 

That  this  is  so  results  most  clearly  from  the 
nature  of  the  charge  brought  against  him.  No 
account  is  taken  of  the  many  errors  with  which 
all  upright  citizens  upbraid  him.  He  is  accused 
for  that  which  he  did  at  the  opening  of  his 
career,  and  not  at  all  for  that  which  signalized 
its  close.  He  is  not  accused  of  embracing  the 
cause  of  the  wicked,  nor  of  deserting  the 
standard  of  Uberty,  nor  of  fleeing  from  the 
Capitol,  although  in  no  other  place  could  he 
have  Uved  more  honorably,  or  died  more  glori- 
ously. What,  then,  is  the  charge,  thou  mayest 
ask  ?  This  is  the  one  great  crime  for  which  he 
is  brought  to  trial,  and  if  he  be  condemned  for 
this,  I  shall  consider  him  to  have  been  marked 
not  with  infamy  but  with  eternal  glory:  he  has 
dared  to  entertain  the  hope  that  the  repubHc 
should  be  restored  to  safety  and  to  freedom, 
and  that  questions  of  the  Roman  empire  and 
the  Roman  dominion  should  be  settled  at 
Rome.'s  A  crime,  this,  worthy  of  the  gallows 
and  the  attendant  vultures,  indeed!  This, 
surely,  is  the  sum  and  substance  of  the  accusa- 
tion, and  it  is  for  this  that  pimishment  is 
demanded:   that  a  Roman  citizen  should  have 


250     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

voiced  his  grief  at  seeing  his  country,  the  right- 
ful queen  of  the  universe,  the  slave  of  the 
vilest  of  men ! 

Now  at  last  listen  to  that  which  first 
prompted  me  to  write,  and  thou  wilt  have  good 
cause  for  laughter  after  the  sad  recital  which 
has  preceded.  While  the  trial  is  in  this 
unsettled  state,  I  learn  from  the  letters  of 
friends  that  one  hope  of  safety  still  remains — 
the  rumor  which  has  spread  abroad  that  Rienzo 
is  a  most  famous  poet!  Consequently  it  seems 
an  act  of  sacrilege  to  do  violence  to  a  man  so 
worthy  and  dedicated  to  so  sacred  a  study. 
The  magnificent  phrases  which  Cicero  addressed 
to  the  judges  in  defense  of  his  teacher  Aulus 
Licinius  Archias  are  now  upon  the  lips  of  every- 
one. ^^  Many  years  ago  I  brought  back  that 
speech  from  far-off  Germany,  whither  I  had 
roamed  impelled  by  my  youthful  desire  to  visit 
those  regions;  and  the  following  year  I  sent  it 
on  to  you  all  at  Florence,  who  were  so  eagerly 
expecting  it.  I  do  not  stop  to  cite  the  passage; 
for  I  can  readily  see  from  your  letters  that  you 
still  prize  that  famous  oration,  and  still  read  it 
with  care.^^ 

What  shall  I  say  of  this  strange  rumor?  I 
heartily  rejoice.    I  deem  it  a  cause  for  endless 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       251 

congratulation  that  the  Muses  are  held  so  much 
in  honor  even  today.  The  following  is  even  more 
astonishing :  that  the  mere  mention  of  the  Muses 
should  be  potent  enough  to  bring  safety  to  one 
who  is  hated  by  his  very  judges,  men  who  are 
quite  unacquainted  with  their  refining  influence. 
What  greater  victory  could  the  Muses  have 
scored  imder  Augustus  Caesar,  an  age  when  they 
were  most  highly  honored,  and  when,  from  every 
land,  poets  assembled  at  Rome  to  behold  the 
noble  countenance  of  him  who  was  at  once  an 
imparalleled  prince,  the  friend  of  poets,  and  the 
master  of  the  universe  ?  What  greater  tribute, 
I  ask,  could  have  been  paid  to  the  Muses  in 
those  days  than  this  which  we  witness  today: 
that  a  man  undoubtedly  hated  (though  how  just 
or  unjust  the  hatred  I  do  not  stop  to  prove), 
and  entirely  free  from  all  guilt  (yet  pro- 
nounced guilty  and  convicted),  a  man  who,  by 
the  unanimous  vote  of  his  judges  was  deemed 
worthy  of  capital  punishment,  that  this  man,  I 
say,  should  be  snatched  from  the  very  jaws  of 
death  by  an  appeal  to  the  Muses  ?  I  repeat,  I 
rejoice,  and  congratulate  both  him  and  the 
Muses.  I  congratulate  him,  because  the  Muses 
have  been  his  shield;  and  the  Muses,  because 
of  this  honor  so  freely  bestowed.    I  do  not 


252      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

begrudge  him  that,  in  his  hour  of  extreme  need 
and  when  the  trial  has  assumed  such  a  doubtful 
aspect,  the  rumor  of  his  being  a  poet  should 
bring  him  salvation. 

If,  however,  thou  wert  to  ask  me  my  private 
opinion,  I  should  answer  that  Cola  di  Rienzo  is 
a  very  fluent  speaker,  possessing  great  convin- 
cing powers  and  a  decided  vein  for  oratory;  and 
that  as  a  writer,  he  is  pleasing  and  elegant,  and 
his  diction,  though  not  extensive,  is  charming 
and  brilliant.  I  suppose  he  has  read  all  the 
poets,  at  least  aU  those  who  are  generally 
known;  but  he  is  no  more  a  poet  for  that 
reason  than  he  would  be  a  weaver  for  robing 
himself  with  a  mantle  wrought  by  another's 
hands.  The  mere  production  of  verses  is  not 
sufficient  to  merit  for  the  composer  the  name  of 
poet.     Most  true  are  the  words  of  Horace:'^ 

For  one  certainly  should  never  say  this,  "I  know  it's 
Quite  enough  to  give  lines  their  six  feet,"  or  suppose 
Those  true  bards  who,  Hke  me,  write  what's  much 
more  like  prose. 

As  for  Cola,  never,  to  my  knowledge,  has  he 
managed  to  write  a  single  line;  nor  has  he 
devoted  to  the  subject  of  poetry  the  slightest 
study,  and  without  appUcation  nothing  can  be 
well  done,  no  matter  how  easy  it  be. 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       253 

I  have  wished  to  acquaint  thee  with  these 
facts,  that  thou  mayest  grieve  over  the  lot 
which  has  befallen  the  former  dehverer  of  a 
people,  that  thou  mayest  rejoice  at  his  unhoped- 
for freedom,  and,  thirdly,  that  thou  mayest,  at 
one  and  the  same  time,  weep  and  laugh  over 
the  cause  of  his  safety,  even  as  I  do  now.  Stop 
to  consider  for  a  moment.  If,  under  the  shield 
of  poetry.  Cola  escapes  uninjured  from  such 
great  perils  (and  may  it  so  fall  out!),  what 
dangers  would  Vergil  not  escape  ?^'  If  tried  by 
the  judges  of  this  generation,  Vergil,  however, 
would  perish  for  other  reasons:  for  today  he  is 
considered  not  a  poet,  but  a  sorcerer.  Indeed, 
I  shall  now  tell  thee  something  that  will  in- 
crease thy  mirth.  Even  I,  the  most  inveterate 
enemy  that  ever  was  of  both  divination  and 
sorcery,  even  I  have  at  times  been  pronounced  a 
magician  by  these  most  worthy  judges — and  all 
because  of  my  intimacy  with  Vergil.  Behold 
how  low  our  studies  have  fallen!  Behold  to 
what  hateful  and  ridiculous  trifles  they  are 
reduced!*" 

I  shall  relate  to  thee  one  other  remarkable 
absurdity,  in  order  that,  from  a  comparison  of 
several  instances,  thou  mayest  become  better 
acquainted  with  the  trend  of  affairs,  and  that. 


254     F-  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

from  a  consideration  of  the  example  set  by  those 
in  high  station,  thou  mayest  form  some  ade- 
quate conception  of  what  must  be  the  conditions 
among  the  populace. 

I  have  at  Babylon  a  dear  friend,  a  man  whose 
acquaintance  deserves  to  be  cultivated  with 
great  care.  I  call  him  "friend"  only  because  I 
employ  the  ancient  and  candid  style  of  speech, 
writing  in  the  same  spirit  in  which  Cicero 
addressed  Pompey  the  Great  as  friend,  or  in 
which  Pliny  the  Elder  sent  familiar  greetings  to 
his  Vespasian.  If  I  were  to  adopt  the  slavish 
and  cringing  speech  of  today,  I  should  be  com- 
pelled to  see  in  my  friend  only  an  excellent  and 
revered  master.  Whatever  may  be  the  proper 
title,  this  much  I  can  assert  in  all  honesty: 
that  he  is  one  of  the  few,  a  prince  among 
princes,  and  foremost  among  the  highest;  a 
man  who  reflects  honor  upon  his  office  of 
Roman  cardinal;  a  man  of  rare  foresight,  whose 
wisdom,  it  would  seem,  is  easily  capable  of 
ruling  the  world;  a  man,  finally,  of  lofty 
intellect  and  of  wide  reading." 

But,  after  all,  Sallustius  Crispus  is  right  in 
saying:"  "Intellect  displays  its  power  only  in 
those  things  to  which  attention  has  been  given." 
This   great   man   frequently   honors   me   by 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       255 

admitting  me  to  his  conversation  with  intimate 
friends.  Often  enough  there  is  mention  of 
someone  or  other  who  has  learned  to  put 
together  a  few  words  in  making  a  pubHc 
address,  or  perhaps  has  learned  to  compose  a 
letter  with  great  difficulty.  In  each  and  every 
instance,  my  friend  would  turn  to  me  with  great 
eagerness  (not  to  say  stupefied  amazement), 
and  would  ask  of  me:  "Is  this  man  a  poet?" 
I,  on  the  other  hand,  would  remain  silent. 
What  else  could  I  do  ? 

One  day,  finally,  he  put  that  question  once 
too  often,  this  time  in  regard  to  certain  rhetori- 
cians who,  through  long  practice  rather  than 
ability,  could  manage  to  write  some  stupid  and 
nauseating  stuff.^^  It  was  with  difficulty  that 
I  repressed  a  smile;  and  he,  being  a  very  keen 
man,  noticed  at  once  my  changed  expression. 
In  consequence,  he  pressed  me  urgently  and 
more  urgently  to  tell  him  the  reason  thereof. 
And  then,  in  obedience  to  his  reiterated  wishes 
I  took  advantage  of  the  familiarity  with  which 
I  always  speak  to  him.  I  rebuked  him  (with  all 
due  respect,  however)  for  the  crass  ignorance  of 
so  noble  a  subject  in  a  man  of  such  lofty 
genius.  I  pointed  out  that  he  did  not  com- 
prehend even  the  elementary  and  fundamental 


256     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

principles  of  an  art  to  which  formerly  (as  is 
certain)  the  masters  of  the  earth,  burdened 
down  as  they  were  with  affairs  of  state,  had 
devoted  their  profound  intellects  with  such 
longing  and  earnestness.  I  cited  several  in- 
stances (which  thou,  of  course,  dost  not  need), 
and  concluded  by  proving  to  him  that  the  num- 
ber of  poets  was  far  smaller  than  he  thought.  I 
spoke  hastily,  briefly,  and  superficially,  dis- 
coursing on  the  origin  of  poetry,  on  its  nature 
and  on  its  aims,  but  especially  on  the  incredible 
scarcity  of  poets,  the  last  subdivision  of  learned 
men  mentioned  by  Cicero  in  his  work  De 
Oratore.^'^  That  great  man  listened  to  my  words 
in  wrapt  attention;  for,  though  learned  in  other 
matters,  he  was  quite  ignorant  of  the  subject 
under  discussion.  He  seemed  to  be  thirsty  for 
information;  when  I  was  done  speaking,  he 
asked  many  questions  on  the  separate  points  of 
my  discourse;  and  since  that  day  he  has  care- 
fully avoided  making  inquiries  on  the  subject 
of  poetry. 

As  for  thyself,  mayest  thou  Hve  happily  and 
well.  And  unless  thou  thinkest  otherwise, 
when  thou  art  through  reading  today's  letter 
and  yesterday's,  send  them  on  to  our  dear 
Zanobi  at  Naples,  so  that  both  he  and  my 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       257 

Barbato  may  share  our  mirth  and  om-  indigna- 
tion, provided,  of  course,  that  Barbato  has  by 
this  time  left  his  haven  at  Sohnona  and  has 
returned  to  the  stormy  waters  of  Parthenope. 
At  the  Fountain  of  the  Sorgue,  August  ic^^ 

NOTES 

I.  Fracassetti  wrongly  adopted  July  of  the  year 
135 1  as  the  date  of  Cola's  journey  to  Avignon.  In  this 
he  followed  Papencordt,  and  he  was  consequently  forced 
into  several  misunderstandings.  For  instance,  he 
argues  that  Cola's  journey  could  not  have  taken  place 
in  July  of  1352,  because  in  such  case  it  would  be  difficult 
to  believe  that  he  could  have  reached  Avignon  as  soon 
as  August,  and  that  the  trial  could  already  have  been 
ended  by  August  10,  when  all  fear  of  Cola's  conviction 
had  vanished,  and  when  there  was  already  talk  of 
acquitting  him  on  the  strange  plea  of  his  being  a  poet 
(3,  p.  237).  Fracassetti  furthermore  assumes  that  a 
considerable  period  of  time  elapsed  after  Cola's  arrival 
at  Avignon  before  the  Pope  appointed  the  three 
cardinals  who  were  to  judge  him,  and  assumes  also  the 
usual  delays  of  the  law,  all  in  the  endeavor  to  bridge  the 
gap  between  the  supposed  date  of  Cola's  arrival  in  July 
or  August,  1351,  and  August  10, 1352,  the  date  of  Fam., 
XIII,  6.  Finally,  and  for  the  same  reason,  he  places 
Petrarca's  letter  to  the  Roman  People  {Sine  Titulo, 
IV)  chronologically  ahead  of  this  letter  to  Nelli  (Fam., 
XIII,  6). 

The  papal  briefs  already  cited  prove  beyond  per- 


258     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

adventure  that  Cola's  journey  from  Bohemia  to 
Avignon  took  place  during  July,  1352.  Consequently, 
the  letter  to  Nelli  was  in  fact  written  shortly  thereafter, 
and  the  "recently"  (nuper,  Frac,  II,  p.  234)  of  Petrarca 
must  be  taken  in  its  literal  sense,  and  not  (as  Fracassetti 
says,  3,  p.  237)  in  a  rather  broad  and  liberal  sense.  It 
follows,  therefore,  that  Fatn.,  XIII,  6,  must  be  earlier 
than  Sine  Titulo,  IV.  The  internal  evidence  of  Fam., 
XIII,  6,  itself  refutes  the  assumptions  of  Fracassetti. 
We  shall  take  up  the  various  points  in  their  proper 
order.  There  was  no  delay  in  appointing  the  three 
cardinals  who  were  to  judge  Cola.  Petrarca  distinctly 
says  that  they  were  appointed  immediately  after  Cola's 
arrival — Ui  ergo  [sc,  Nicolaus]  pervenit,  illico  pontifex 
maximus  trihus  e  numero  principum  ecclesiae  causam 
eius  discernendam  dedit  (Frac,  II,  p.  236).  All  fear  of 
Cola's  conviction  had  not  vanished,  for  Petrarca  says: 
first,  that  Cola's  safety  was  still  in  the  hands  of 
strangers — Nunc  ergo  viri  solus  .  .  .  .  de  manihus 
pendet  alienis  (ibid.,  p.  237);  secondly,  that  he  learns 
from  the  letters  of  friends  that  but  one  hope  for  Cola's 
acquittal  remains — unam  sibi  relictam  spent  salutis 
{ibid.,  p.  238) ;  and  thirdly,  that  Cola  is  in  his  hour  of 
extreme  need — in  extremis  casibus  {ibid.,  p.  239;  cf .  in  ex- 
tremis, III,  p.  501,  and  dum  licet,  ibid.,  p.  503).  Finally, 
Petrarca  continues  to  speak  of  Cola's  acquittal  as  a 
matter  that  had  been  unhoped  for,  but  which  was  still 
to  be  realized — de  insperata  gaudeas  salute;  and  he  adds : 
"if  Cola  escapes  uninjured  from  such  great  perils" — 
si  ...  .  Nicolaus  etantis  periculis  evaserit  (II,  p.  240). 
All  the  above  citations  prove,  we  think,  not  only  that 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       259 

the  trial  was  not  over  by  August  10,  but,  indeed,  that 
it  had  only  been  fairly  launched.  For  this  reason,  as 
well  as  for  the  internal  evidence  offered  by  Sine  Titulo, 
IV,  we  reach  the  conclusion  that  said  letter  is  to  be 
dated  later  than  Fam.,  XIII,  6,  and  perhaps  not  earlier 
than  the  middle  of  September,  1352. 

2.  In  Fam.,  XIII,  5,  which  precedes  the  present 
letter  in  Petrarca's  correspondence,  Petrarca  relates 
that  his  friends  had  warmly  offered  to  him  the  oflSce  of 
apostolic  secretary,  and  that,  in  the  presence  of  the 
Pope  himself,  they  had  remarked  that  the  only  draw- 
back was  his  style,  which  would  prove  to  be  too  noble 
and  too  elevated  for  the  position  offered  to  him. 
Petrarca  could  hardly  believe  them  serious  in  their 
offering  to  him  a  post  of  such  honor;  indeed,  he  judged 
that  their  criticism  of  his  style  was  meant  very  much 
in  the  nature  of  satire.  The  assurances  of  the  assembly, 
however,  restored  his  confidence  in  the  sincerity  of  their 
proposal.  He  was  then  given  a  theme,  on  which  to 
compose  something  extemporaneously. 

Petrarca,  who  dreaded  the  mere  thought  of  tying 
himself  down  to  such  steady  employment,  and  who 
considered  any  encroachment  upon  his  time  as  nothing 
short  of  slavery,  here  saw  his  opportunity,  and  he  made 
the  most  of  it.  He  assures  Nelli  that,  though  the 
theme  suggested  to  him  was  in  no  way  worthy  of  the 
Muses  and  of  Apollo,  he  so  exerted  his  every  power  as 
to  rise  to  heights  to  which  his  auditors  could  not 
follow.  The  verdict  of  the  assembly  was  that  Petrarca 
should  be  allowed  time  in  which  to  learn  the  barbaric 
style  characteristic  of  the  chanceries  of  the  day.    And 


26o     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Petrarca,  breathing  freely  once  again,  concludes  the 
letter  with  congratulating  himself  upon  his  narrow 
escape  from  the  threatened  servitude. 

3.  Robinson  and  Rolfe  here  translate  (p.  342): 
"although  there  are  plenty  of  trifling  duties."  The 
original  reads  (Frac,  II,  p.  233):  Nil  certe  nunc  mains 
habeo  quod  agam:  immo  vero  multa:  sed  maioribus 
incumbere  breve  tempus  vetat.  Similarly,  we  do  not 
think  that  Babylone  ultimo  digressus  (ibid.,  p.  234) 
means  "Having  left  Babylon  for  the  last  time."  It  so 
happens  that  after  his  departure  for  Italy  on  May  i, 
1353  (Frac,  I, p.  181),  Petrarca  never  again  set  foot  upon 
French  soil.  But  siu^ely  he  could  not  have  known  this 
when  writing  the  present  letter  to  Nelli  on  August  10, 
1352;  for  Vaucluse  was  only  15  miles  distant  from 
Avignon,  and  the  slightest  call  from  the  Pope  or  from 
one  of  his  many  friends  in  the  Sacred  College  would 
have  brought  him  back  post-haste.  Were  any  further 
proof  necessary,  we  should  find  it  in  a  letter  which 
Petrarca  wrote  many  years  later  (in  1361-62),  in  which 
he  describes  to  Cardinal  Talleyrand  the  motives  which 
at  about  this  time  (December,  1352,  or  January,  1353) 
urged  him  to  leave  Avignon.  Petrarca  there  says 
(Sen.,  I,  3,  p.  739,  quoted  below  in  n.  20):  "Therefore, 
at  the  time  that  he  [Innocent  VI]  ascended  the  Sacred 
Chair  [December  30,  1352],  I  left  Avignon  not  know- 
ing whether  or  not  I  should  ever  return" — nescio  an 
umquam  reversurus  inde  abiens. 

4.  Georgics,  i.  312. 

5.  In  a  letter  to  Pietro,  abbot  of  St.  Benigno, 
written  in  the  same  year  as  the  present  letter,  Petrarca 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       261 

expresses  himself  on  this  subject  with  greater  freedom 
and  playfulness  {Fam.,  XIII,  7,  Vaucluse,  1352).  He 
says  (Frac,  II,  pp.  245-46): 

"  Hitherto  well-meaning  young  men,  eager  to  further 
their  own  interests  and  those  of  their  friends,  were 
accustomed  to  draw  up  such  papers  as  pertained  to 
their  own  property,  or  to  their  business  affairs,  or  to  the 
noisy  contentions  of  the  echoing  lawcourts.  But  now 
we  are  all  plying  the  same  trade.  Now  the  words  of 
Horace  are  verified  to  the  letter  [Ep.,  ii.  i,  117,]  'But 
verses  all  men  scribble,  wise  or  fools.' 

"It  is  but  a  poor  species  of  consolation  to  have 
found  so  many  to  share  one's  burdens.  I  should  prefer 
to  grow  ill  alone.  As  matters  stand,  I  am  preoccupied 
by  my  own  faults  as  well  as  by  those  of  others;  and 
even  if  I  should  wish  to  pause  and  to  regain  my  breath, 
I  am  not  permitteed  to  do  so.  Daily,  and  from  every 
comer  of  the  world,  epistles  and  odes  are  showered 
upon  my  head.  Nor  does  this  satisfy  my  foreign 
correspondents.  I  am  overwhelmed  by  a  perfect 
avalanche  of  letters,  not  only  from  France,  but  also 
from  Greece  and  Germany  and  England.  I  am  called 
upon  to  be  the  arbiter  of  all  talents,  though  unaware  of 
possessing  any  myself.  Were  I  to  answer  each  and 
every  one  of  these  letters,  I  should  be  the  busiest  of 
men.  Were  I  to  condemn  the  fruits  of  their  labors,  I 
should  be  pronounced  an  envious  critic;  were  I  to  laud 
them,  a  false  flatterer;  and  were  I  to  express  no  opinion 
at  all,  I  should  be  judged  insolent  and  haughty.  They 
are  afraid,  I  suppose,  that  I  am  aging  too  slowly. 
Thanks  to  their  incitements  and  to  my  ever  feverish 
passion  for  writing,  I  may  gratify  their  wishes. 

"But  this  was  as  nothing.  Who  would  believe  it? 
The  disease  has  been  spreading,  and  very  recently  it 
fastened  upon  the  Roman  Curia  itself.  What  dost 
thou  suppose  the  lawyers  and  the  physicians  are  now 


262     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

discussing  ?  They  no  longer  study  their  Justinian  and 
their  Aesculapius ;  they  no  longer  pay  heed  to  the  voices 
of  their  clients  or  to  the  groans  of  their  patients.  They 
are  become  deaf,  smitten  with  prophetic  fury  by  the 
names  of  Homer  and  of  Vergil.  They  rove  in  the 
woody  valleys  of  Cirrha,  and  linger  by  the  murmuring 
fountain  of  Aonia.  But  why  do  I  dwell  on  these  minor 
portents?  Wagon-makers,  fullers,  and  farmers  have 
abandoned  the  plough  and  the  other  tools  of  their 
trades,  and  chatter  about  the  Muses  and  Apollo.  It  is 
inconceivable  how  far  this  pestilence  has  diffused  itself, 
which  but  recently  was  confined  to  a  few. 

"If  thou  requirest  a  reason  for  all  this,  it  is  simply 
that  poetry  is  a  most  delightful  thing;  but  it  is  really 
understood  only  by  men  of  rare  talents,  for  poetry 
demands  an  utter  disregard  and  contempt  for  all  mortal 
things,  an  elevated  mind  that  can  withdraw  itself  from 
the  things  of  the  world,  and  suitable  natural  endow- 
ments. Therefore,  both  experience  and  the  authority 
of  the  most  learned  men  teach  us  that  in  none  of  the 
arts  is  progress  less  due  to  study  than  in  that  of  poetry. 

"To  thee,  perchance,  it  may  be  laughable,  but  to  me 
it  is  a  disgusting  fact  that  one  can  stumble  over  poets  at 
every  street  comer,  but  can  behold  scarcely  one  on 
Helicon.  All  men  taste  of  the  Pierian  honeycomb  with 
the  tips  of  their  tongues,  but  not  one  can  digest  it. 
Imagine,  I  beg  of  thee,  how  powerful  and  how  delightful 
a  gift  poetry  must  be  to  its  true  possessors,  when  it  gives 
such  great  pleasure  to  these  idle  dreamers;  when,  in 
spite  of  their  occupations  and  their  greed,  in  spite  of 
the  coimtless  vanities  of  our  age  and  the  many  hours 
spent  in  frivolities,  it  has  caused  these  men  to  forget 
their  affairs  and  to  neglect  the  accumulation  of  riches! 

"For  one  reason  do  I  congratulate  the  fatherland — 
that,  in  the  midst  of  the  miserable  tares  and  barren  oats 
[Vergil,  EcL,  v.  37;  Georg.,  i.  154]  scattered  throughout 
the  world,  there  are  arising  young  men  of  greater 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       263 

ability,  young  men  who  (unless  my  love  deceive  me) 
will  drink,  and  not  in  vain,  at  the  Castalian  spring.  I 
congratulate  you  all,  O  Mantua  beloved  by  the  Muses; 
O  Padua,  Verona,  Umbria,  my  dear  Solmona,  and 
Parthenope,  home  of  Vergil.  For  it  is  far  away  from 
you  that  I  behold  these  new  bands  of  poetasters  roam- 
ing far  and  wide  in  imcertain  by-paths,  and  tormented 
by  a  parching  thirst  which  they  can  never  quench." 

6.  The  references  are,  respectively,  to  the  Bohemian 
king.  Emperor  Charles  IV;  and  to  Clement  VI,  whose 
family  name  was  Pierre  Roger,  and  who  was  a  native 
of  Limoges. 

7.  Robinson  and  Rolfe  omit  from  these  words  (Frac, 
II,  p.  236,  1.  i)  to  In  hoc  statu  {ibid.,  p.  238);  and 
again  from  the  words  0  nugas  (ibid.,  p.  240)  to  the  end 
of  the  letter.  These  two  omissions  constitute  almost 
exactly  one-half  of  the  entire  letter. 

8.  Here  again  we  are  indebted  to  the  Abbe  de  Sade, 
who  seems  to  have  been  so  well  informed  on  matters 
dealing  with  the  Sacred  College.  He  admits  that  the 
three  judges  appointed  to  try  Cola  di  Rienzo  are  not 
known,  but  proposes  the  following  cardinals:  Gui  de 
Boulogne,  Talleyrand,  and  Bertrand  de  Deux  (III, 

P-  233)- 

9.  Cicero,  Cat.,  i.  i,  2. 

10.  Petrarca  refers  to  the  arrest  of  the  barons  at  the 
banquet  given  by  Cola  on  September  14,  and  to  their 
release  on  the  15th,  when  Cola,  as  if  to  make  amends 
for  his  boldness,  showered  honors  and  oflfices  upon  them. 
The  arrested  barons  included  several  members  of  the 
Colonna,  and  even  more  of  the  Orsini.  Their  names 
are  given  in  detail  in  the  anonymous  Vita,  which  con- 


264     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

sequently  becomes  the  chief  source  for  their  identifica- 
tion. According  to  the  Vita,  then  (I,  28,  col.  821),  they 
were:  of  the  Colonna,  Stefano  the  Elder,  the  venerable 
head  of  the  house;  Pietro  d'Agapito  Colonna,  lord  of 
Genazzano,  formerly  provost  of  Marseilles  and  senator 
of  Rome  during  the  first  half  of  1347;  and  Giovanni 
Stefano  Colonna,  grandson  of  Stefano  the  Elder,  and  at 
this  time  a  mere  youth  of  twenty  years,  who  had,  a  few 
days  before,  been  appointed  by  Cola  captain  of  the 
Campagna;  of  the  Orsini,  Roberto,  son  of  Count 
Bertoldo,  and  likewise  senator  of  Rome  during  the  first 
half  of  1347;  Giordano  of  the  Orsini  del  Monte; 
Rinaldo  of  the  Orsini  of  Marino;  Cola,  lord  of  the 
Castle  S.  Angelo;  and  Count  Bertoldo,  lord  of  Vicovaro. 

This  makes  a  total  of  three  Colonna,  and  of  five 
Orsini;  and  the  biographer  adds  {ibid.,  col.  823): 
"and  many  others  of  the  foremost  barons  of  Rome." 

In  Cola's  letter  to  Rinaldo  Orsini  {Epistolario,  No. 
XXIII,  dated  Rome,  September  17,  1347)  we  have  (p. 
61)  practically  the  same  list.  Among  the  Colonna, 
there  is  no  mention  of  Pietro,  son  of  Agapito;  among 
the  Orsini,  we  do  not  find  Senator  Roberto,  but  instead 
there  is  mention  of  Orso,  brother  of  Giordano  del  Monte 
and  son  of  Jacopo  Orsini.  Among  those  who  were 
honored  with  ofiices,  Cola  di  Rienzo  gives  {ibid.,  p.  63) 
the  same  list  as  on  p.  61,  with  the  addition  of  Cola 
Orsini. 

Petrarca  here  considers  that  Cola  di  Rienzo  missed 
his  opportunity.  The  biographer  of  Cola  considers 
him  guilty  of  neglecting  a  second  opportunity  after  the 
battle  of  November  20,  1347,  when  Cola  broke  the 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       265 

power  of  the  barons.  After  an  excursus  on  the  famous 
conversation  between  Hannibal  and  Maharbal  after  the 
battle  of  Cannae,  he  says  (Vita,  I,  36,  cols.  857,  859) : 

"And  now  to  the  point.  If  Cola  di  Rienzo,  the 
Tribune,  had  followed  up  his  victory,  and  had  advanced 
upon  Marino,  he  would  have  taken  the  Castle  of 
Marino,  and  would  have  utterly  destroyed  the  power  of 
Messer  Giordano,  who  could  never  again  have  raised 
his  head.  And  the  people  of  Rome  would  have  lived 
unmolested  in  the  enjoyment  of  their  liberty." 

II.  We  have  already  pointed  out  (chap,  x)  the 
dearth  of  material  for  the  period  of  time  between  the 
writing  of  Fatn.,  VII,  i,  and  Fam.,  VII,  7;  the  former 
letter,  addressed  to  Marco  Barbato,  is  dated  Avignon, 
September  11,  1347;  the  latter,  addressed  to  Cola,  is 
dated  Genoa,  November  29,  1347.  Of  course  Develay 
is  absolutely  wrong  in  identifying  the  "well-pondered 
letter"  here  mentioned  with  Var.,  XL VIII  (Lettres  a 
Rienzi,  II,  90).  Var.,  XLVEII,  was  written  on  the 
occasion  of  Petrarca's  j&rst  hearing  of  Cola's  elevation, 
and  all  agree  that  the  letter  must  be  dated  in  the  end 
of  June  or  in  the  beginning  of  July.  It  is  clear  from 
our  preceding  note  that  the  "well-pondered  letter" 
which  Petrarca  here  mentions  must  have  been  written 
when  he  became  acquainted  with  the  arrest  of  the 
barons  (September  14)  and  with  their  release  (on  the 
iSth).  Cola  sent  a  full  account  of  these  events  to  the 
papal  notary  Rinaldo  Orsini  on  September  17  (see 
note  10).  According  to  our  calculations,  this  letter 
must  have  reached  Avignon  about  October  3.  But  the 
Pope  must  by  this  time  have  heard  only  of  the  arrest  of 


266     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

the  barons,  for  we  find  him  writing  on  October  4,  1347, 
and  interceding  with  Cola  for  the  pardon  of  the  nobles  in 
the  name  of  the  reverence  due  to  the  Pope  and  to  the 
apostolic  see  (Theiner,  II,  No.  177).  Someone,  evi- 
dently, had  hurriedly  sent  a  dispatch  to  the  Pope  on 
the  evening  of  September  14.  The  "well-pondered 
letter"  which  Petrarca  wrote  on  that  occasion,  there- 
fore, must  likewise  have  been  written  in  October,  but 
unfortunately  such  letter  is  not  to  be  found  in  the 
extant  correspondence. 

12.  The  letter  now  referred  to  is  Faw.,  VII,  7,  the 
spirit  of  which  is  clearly  summarized  in  the  present 
paragraph. 

13.  It  will  be  remembered  that  Cola  and  Petrarca 
had  become  thoroughly  acquainted  with  each  other  at 
Avignon  in  1343,  on  the  occasion  of  the  second  embassy 
of  the  Romans  to  the  newly  elected  Pope,  Clement  VI. 
Cf.  chap.  i. 

14.  The  original  Latin  is  here  very  uncertain:  Non 
advertes  ante  vibrante  sententia  {sic)  vel  intestabilem  ilium 
audies  vel  extinctum  (Frac,  II,  p.  237).  Even  as  Fracas- 
setti  (3,  p.  231),  we  have  tried  to  divine  the  meaning 
of  this  passage,  for  it  was  impossible  to  translate  it. 

15.  The  two  charges  on  which  Cola  was  to  be  tried 
are  distinctly  these:  his  declarations  that  Rome  was  a 
free  city,  and  that  the  rights  of  the  Roman  empire  were 
in  the  sacred  possession  of  the  Roman  people  only. 
These  two  statements,  therefore,  constituted  a  declara- 
tion of  war  against  the  two  principles  which  so  funda- 
mentally ruled  the  Middle  Ages,  the  two  principles 
represented  by  the  Guelphs  and  by  the  Ghibellines,  in 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       267 

other  words,  the  supremacy  in  Italy  of  the  Roman 
chiirch  as  embodied  in  a  Pope,  and  the  supremacy  of 
the  Holy  Roman  Empire  as  embodied  in  an  emperor  of 
German  origin.  The  former  declaration  assailed  the 
temporal  claims  of  the  papacy  over  Rome;  the  latter, 
those  of  Charles  IV.  According  to  Petrarca's  testi- 
mony, then,  this  lengthy  trial  of  Cola  reduces  itself  to  a 
political  one,  purely  and  simply.  And  the  religious 
trial — that  is  to  say  the  question  of  Cola's  heresy 
and  the  subsequent  excommimication  inflicted  upon 
him — must  have  been  hushed,  or  previously  dealt 
with  as  quickly  and  as  concisely  as  the  description 
thereof  by  the  anonymous  biographer  of  Cola:  "His 
deeds  were  examined,  and  he  was  found  to  be  a  faithful 
Christian." 

16.  Cicero,  pro  Archia,  viii. 

17.  Petrarca  says  (Frac,  II,  p.  238):  ilia  quidem 
praeclara  sententia  iatn  in  vulgus  ejusa,  qua  pro  Aulo 
Licinio  Archia  praeceptore  suo  apud  indices  usus  est 
Cicero;  quam  non  apposui.  The  quam  surely  refers  to 
sententia,  and  the  sentence  quam  non  apposui  is  to  be 
rendered:  "I  do  not  stop  to  cite  the  passage"  {quam, 
i.e.,  sententiam);  cf.  "But  I  need  not  add  a  description 
of  the  oration"  (Robinson  and  Rolfe,  p.  345).  Simi- 
larly, Petrarca's  om^^owew  ....  vobis  optantibus  trans- 
missam  (Frac,  II,  p.  239, 1. 1)  surely  indicates  that  the 
oration  was  eagerly  desired  by  all  Petrarca's  Florentine 
friends,  including  Nelli,  as  is  proved  by  the  plural  vobis 
instead  of  a  tibi,  and  by  the  plurals  habetis  and  legitis 
instead  of  a  habes  and  a  legis;  hence  the  oration  was  not 
sent   "in  response  to  the  desires  of  your  friends" 


268     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

(Robinson  and  Rolfe,  ibid.),  but  "  to  you  all  at  Florence, 
who  were  so  eagerly  expecting  it." 

Petrarca  gives  a  brief  account  of  his  discovery  of  the 
oration  pro  Archia  in  a  letter  written  to  the  papal 
secretary  Luca  della  Penna  (Sen.,  XVI,  i,  Dabis 
veniam,  dated  Arqua,  April  27,  1374;  Sen.,  XV,  i  in 
the  Basle  ed.  of  1581,  p.  948): 

"At  about  the  twenty-fifth  year  of  my  life  [1329], 
while  hurriedly  traveling  among  the  Belgians  and  the 
Swiss,  I  reached  the  city  of  Liege >  Upon  hearing  that 
the  city  contained  a  goodly  number  of  books,  I  made  a 
halt  there,  and  detained  my  companions  until  I  was  in 
possession  of  two  orations  of  Cicero,  one  copied  by  the 
hand  of  a  friend,  the  second  by  my  own.  The  latter 
oration  I  afterward  spread  throughout  Italy;  and 
that  thou  mayest  smile,  I  shall  tell  thee  that  it  was 
quite  a  considerable  task  to  find  some  ink  in  so  fine  a 
barbarian  city,  and  that  when  it  was  found,  it  was  very 
much  the  color  of  safifron." 

18.  Sat.,  i,  4,  40-42  (tr.  by  R.  M.  Millington). 

19.  Petrarca  says  (Frac,  II,  p.  240):  cogitesque:  si 
(quod  utinam  accidat)  sub  clypeo  poetico  Nicolaus  e  tantis 
periculis  evaserit,  unde  non  evasurus  esset  Maro? 
Robinson  and  Rolfe  (p.  347)  render  as  follows:  "and 
will  wonder,  if  Cola — which  God  grant! — can,  in  such 
imminent  peril,  find  shelter  beneath  the  aegis  of  the 
poet,  why  Vergil  should  not  escape  in  the  same  way." 

20.  There  is  a  passing  reference  to  this  accusation 
against  Petrarca  in  Fam.,  IX,  5  (Frac,  II,  pp.  18-19, 
dated  Avignon,  December  28,  1352): 

"Perhaps,  I  say,  to  many  I  now  appear  to  be  a 
necromancer  and  enchanter,  because,  forsooth,  I  am 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       269 

frequently  alone  and  because  (it  is  a  thing  which  has 
justly  dispelled  my  wrath  with  laughter)  I  read  the 
works  of  Vergil,  as  those  most  learned  men  say.  And  I 
do  not  deny  it;  I  have  read  them.  Behold  the  cause  of 
their  suspicions!  Behold  the  disrepute  cast  upon  our 
studies!" 

The  above  letter  continues  with  some  very  interest- 
ing remarks  upon  the  vanity  of  human  wishes.  But 
the  details  of  the  occm-rence  are  given  in  a  letter  written 
years  later  (in  1361  or  1362)  to  Cardinal  Talleyrand, 
and  they  are  mentioned  in  connection  with  the  post  of 
Apostolic  Secretary  which  had  again  been  offered  to 
him  (Sen.,  I,  4,  Litteras  pridem;  I,  3  in  the  Basle  ed.  of 
1581,  p.  739). 

"It  was  with  reverent  joy,  but  with  amazement, 
most  loving  Father,  that  I  read  thy  letter  and  the 
commands  of  his  Holiness  which  it  contained.  The 
great  hurry  of  thy  messenger  did  not  allow  me  the  time 
necessary  for  an  adequate  answer  thereto.  Neverthe- 
less, I  answered  as  best  I  could,  very  briefly,  but 
clearly.  That  which  I  had  not  time  to  put  down  in 
writing,  I  was  content  to  confide  to  thy  trusted  messen- 
ger. But  behold,  I  am  now  again  overwhelmed  by 
more  messengers  and  by  more  letters  on  the  same 
subject,  whereat  my"  astonishemnt  increases,  and 
likewise  my  joy. 

"For  who,  I  ask,  would  not  be  amazed,  and  who 
would  not  rejoice  at  becoming  the  friend  of  the  Vicar  of 
Jesus  Christ;  at  becoming  a  friend  of  that  man  who  is 
wont  not  merely  to  suspect,  but  actually  to  aflfirm  that 
I  am  a  magician  ?  Who  would  not  rejoice  that  he  has 
now  suddenly  laid  aside  this  suspicion  of  me,  a  suspicion 
which  he  had  so  falsely  entertained  and  which  hitherto 
he  had  always  so  stubbornly  defended  against  thy 


270     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

eloquent  remonstrances  and  against  those  of  many  who 
desired  to  root  it  out?  Why  should  I  not  rejoice? 
Not  only  has  he  now  laid  aside  such  suspicion,  but  he 
has  replaced  it  with  an  opinion  so  utterly  the  opposite 
that  he  offers  to  me  the  post  of  Apostolic  Secretary,  and 
beseeches  with  gifts  and  with  prayers  the  faithful 
services  of  the  very  man  at  whose  conversation  and 
presence  he  once  seemed  to  shudder!  Great  is  the 
power  of  truth;  it  may  be  crushed  and  prostrated  by 
falsehood,  but  it  cannot  be  destroyed.  After  lying 
prostrate  for  a  time,  of  its  own  strength  will  truth  rise 
to  greater  and  brighter  heights. 

"May  God,  however,  forgive  him  who  was  so 
falsely  the  author  of  that  suspicion  [Cardinal  Pierre 
Desprez].  He  was  a  great  man  indeed,  for  he  was  not 
the  least  among  those  of  thy  order  [he  had  been  vice- 
chancellor  since  1325];  in  addition,  he  was  a  most 
learned  jurist  (which  makes  his  error  all  the  more 
remarkable),  a  man  of  the  most  varied  experience 
[cardinal  since  1320]  and  of  very  advanced  years  [born 
c.  1280].  But  perhaps  his  was  not  an  error  at  all,  but 
merely  an  evidence  of  his  hatred 

"  Whatever  may  have  been  the  cause,  he  pronounced 
me  a  magician,  and  he  did  not  blush  to  allege  as  his 
reason  the  fact  that  I  read  the  works  of  Vergil,  or  had 
read  them.  And  he  found  men  to  believe  him  [among 
others.  Cardinal  Etienne  Aubert,  of  Limoges].  Behold 
the  intellects  to  which  is  intrusted  the  control  of  the 
highest  matters ! 

"Thou  knowest,  in  truth,  how  often  we  joked  over 
these  accusations,  and  several  times  even  in  the 
presence  of  him  whom  my  accuser  had  persuaded 
[Cardinal  Aubert].  But  when  at  last  he  [Cardinal 
Aubert]  had  been  raised  to  the  papal  see  [as  Innocent 
VI],  then  the  accusation  ceased  to  be  a  jesting  matter, 
and  it  began  to  turn  to  wrath  with  thee,  and  to  grief 
with  me.     It  is  not  that  I  especially  desired  anything 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       271 

of  him,  for  all  my  desires  are  well  known  to  thee.  But 
since  Benedict  [XII]  had  judged  my  youth,  and 
Clement  [VI]  my  manhood,  and  since  they  had  found 
me,  I  do  not  say  innocent,  but  at  any  rate  averse  to 
base  studies  and  to  injurious  arts,  I  could  not  but 
grieve  that  my  old  age  had  been  suspected  by  Innocent. 
Therefore,  at  the  time  that  he  ascended  the  sacred  chair 
[December  30,  1352],  I  left  Avignon  not  knowing 
whether  or  not  I  should  ever  return.  And  though,  in 
compliance  with  even  his  wishes,  thou  hadst  desired  to 
take  me  to  him  that  I  might  bid  him  farewell,  I  refused, 
lest  my  magical  arts,  should  annoy  him,  or  lest  his 
credulity  should  annoy  me. 

"Thou  knowest  that  I  am  speaking  the  truth,  when 
I  say  that  thou  didst  endeavor  time  and  again,  and  in 
vain,  not  to  have  me  set  out  without  having  paid  my 
respects  to  him.  Behold  what  the  venomous  tongue  of 
a  single  man  brought  upon  me,  a  man  who  had  no 
earthly  reason  for  hating  me!  But  nothing  happens 
without  a  reason;  he  [Desprez]  hated  me,  not  indeed 
for  myself,  but  on  account  of  that  man  with  whom  he 
remembered  that  I  had  lived  on  the  most  intimate 
terms  [Cardinal  Giovanni  Colonna,  who  died  July  3, 
1348].  Aye,  on  account  of  that  same  man  he  hated 
thee  also;  but,  being  conscious  of  fostering  an  unjust 
hatred,  he  feigned  a  friendship  for  both  of  us,  consum- 
mate hypocrite  that  he  was!  I  mention  facts  that  are 
well  known  to  thee:  though  that  man  had  been  laid  to 
rest,  as  if  not  appeased  by  his  death,  he  [Desprez]  had 
declared  war  upon  his  very  ashes 

"The  Pontiff,  indeed,  can  scarcely  believe  that  man 
a  magician  whom  he  desires  as  his  secretary;  nor  can 
he  suppose  that  that  man  devotes  his  labors  to  abomi- 
nable incantations  and  sorceries  whom  he  deems 
worthy  of  the  secrets  of  his  inner  councils  and  fit  to 
perform  the  duties  of  his  sacred  correspondence.  For 
these  great  honors  do  I  render  him  thanks;  nor  do  I 


272      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

render  him  lesser  thanks  for  having  rid  himself  of  his 
delusion " 

21.  These  would  seem  to  be  sufficient  indications 
whereby  to  identify  Petrarca's  "dear  friend,"  and  yet 
such  identification  is  at  present  impossible.  Develay's 
statement  that  the  cardinal  referred  to  is  Giovanni 
Colonna  (Lettres  a  Rienzi,  II,  103)  is,  of  course,  the 
wildest  kind  of  a  guess;  for  Cardinal  Giovanni  died  of 
the  plague  at  Avignon  on  July  3,  1348.  Fracassetti 
(3,  p.  238)  advances  the  hypothesis  that  the  cardinal  in 
question  may  have  been  one  of  the  three  cardinals 
appointed  to  try  Cola. 

22.  Sallust,  Cat.,  51,  3. 

23.  Petrarca's  meaning  and  words,  pingue  quiddam  et 
rancidum  (Frac,  II,  p.  241),  are  reminiscent  of  the  words 
spoken  by  Cicero  with  similar  purpose,  pingue  quiddam 
sonantihus  atque  peregrinum  {pro  Archia,  10,  26). 

24.  The  original  Latin  is  misleading:  quern  novis- 
simum  articulum  in  Oratore  suo  Tullius  attigit  (Frac,  II, 
p.  241 ) .  Petrarca  undoubtedly  refers  to  the  De  Oratore, 
i.  3.  That  chapter  speaks  first  of  the  philosophers,  and 
(says  Cicero)  it  would  be  difficult  to  enumerate  the  large 
number  of  eminent  ones;  secondly,  it  speaks  of  the 
mathematicians,  all  of  whom  seem  to  attain  what  they 
earnestly  desire;  thirdly,  of  musicians  and  of  gram- 
marians, who  are  able  to  master  the  whole  range  of  their 
sciences,  though  they  are  almost  infinite.  And  finally 
Cicero  says  (ibid.,  i.  3,  11): 

"I  think  I  may  truly  say  this:  that  of  all  those  who 
have  occupied  themselves  with  the  studies  and  the 
principles  of  the  most  liberal  arts,  the  number  of  those 


COLA  SENT  TO  POPE  CLEMENT  VI       273 

who  have  risen  to  eminence  is  smallest  among  the 
poets.  And  in  the  number  of  the  learned  ....  there 
will  be  found  far  fewer  good  orators  than  good  poets." 

25.  There  is  a  strange  inconsistency  among  authors 
in  regard  to  the  date  of  this  letter,  which  is  August  10, 
1352  (Frac,  I,  p.  no;  3,  pp.  227,  236;  II,  p.  242).  Pap- 
encordt,  who  prints  part  of  this  letter  to  Nelli  among 
his  Documents  (No.  28),  dates  it  Vaucluse,  August  12, 
1352  (p.  Ixxviii),  but  correctly  prints  ad  fontem  Sorgie 
nil  Id.  Aug.  on  p.  Ixxxi,  and  gives  August  10,  1352,  on 
p.  254,  n.  I,  Filippini,  citing  and  perhaps  misunder- 
standing Papencordt,  gives  August  12,  135 1  {Studi 
storici,  X,  254,  n.  2),  changing  it  without  any  explana- 
tion to  August  12,  1352,  in  the  continuation  of  his 
article  {op.  cit.,  XI,  11,  n.  2).  Gregorovius  (likewise 
using  Papencordt)  says  August  12  on  one  page  (VI, 
351,  n.  2)  and  August  10  on  the  next  (p.  352,  n.  i;  cf. 
also  Faucon,  pp.  53,  55).  The  reason  for  the  slip  on 
the  part  of  Papencordt  (whom  they  all  follow)  was  a 
momentary  thoughtlessness  as  to  the  day  on  which  the 
Ides  of  August  fell.  Since  these  fell  on  the  13th  (an4 
not  on  the  15th),  four  days  before  the  Ides  would, 
according  to  the  Roman  method  of  calculating  dates, 
be  August  10.  A  further  proof  of  the  correctness  of 
this  date  is  to  be  found  in  Petrarca's  closing  statement 
referring  to  another  letter  to  Nelli  written  on  the 
preceding  day.  This  letter  is  extant  (Fam.,  XIII,  5) 
and  is  dated  V  Idus  Augusti  (Frac,  II,  p.  233),  that 
is,  August  9.     For  this  letter,  see  above,  n.  2. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

The  trial  of  Cola  proceeded  with  all  the 
wonted  delays  of  the  law.  Indeed,  there  was 
not  much  attention  paid  to  the  former  Tribune 
after  the  excitement  of  his  arrival  had  abated. 
The  first  mention  of  Cola  in  the  books  of  papal 
expenditures  is  found  under  date  of  August  14, 
1352,  where  the  interesting  fact  is  recorded  of 
the  purchase  of  a  bed  for  the  imprisoned 
Tribune  (Faucon,  p.  56).  The  next  entry  is 
under  date  of  October  21,  1352,  and  it  records 
the  payments  made  by  Michel  de  Pistoie 
(Michele  di  Pistoia?),  the  sergeant-at-arms  in 
charge  of  Cola,  for  other  purchases  intended  to 
satisfy  Cola's  necessities  (Faucon,  p.  57).  In 
the  meantime  Cola,  in  his  vaulted  prison- 
chamber,  calmly  read  his  Bible  and  his  Roman 
historians,  feeling,  perhaps,  quite  certain  of 
his  ultimate  freedom.  If  Gui  de  Boulogne 
was  really  one  of  the  three  cardinals  appointed 
to  try  Cola,  then  his  mission  to  Paris  in  the 
early  part  of  September,  1352,  caused  a  vacancy 
in  the  Board  of  Cardinals,  and  an  unavoidable 
delay  in  the  trial  must  have  ensued.  Agaia, 
the  illness  of  the  Pope,  Clement  VI,  and  his 

274 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  275 

death  on  December  6,  1352,  must  further 
have  brightened  Cola's  prospects  of  ultimate 
acquittal.  Under  the  new  Pope  Innocent  VI, 
who  had  not  been  directly  sinned  against  by 
the  former  Rector  of  the  city,  the  custody  of 
Cola  must  have  become  of  a  very  Ught  and 
easy  nature. 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  relations 
between  Petrarca  and  the  former  cardinal 
Etienne  Aubert  were  not  of  the  friendUest. 
Far  be  it  from  us,  however,  to  suggest  the 
thought  that  Petrarca  was  moved  to  write 
the  present  letter  to  the  Roman  people  (if 
it  is  to  be  dated  in  1353)  from  a  sense  of  injury, 
and  merely  to  bring  upon  the  newly  elected 
Pope  additional  difiSiculties  to  those  aheady 
due  to  his  elevation  to  the  sacred  chair.  But 
surely  the  times  for  an  appeal  to  the  Romans 
were  propitious:  interest  in  the  prosecution 
of  Cola's  trial  had  abated;  the  outburst  of 
the  poetic  mania  in  the  country  of  the  Pro- 
vencals likewise  favored  Cola's  chances;  there 
was  still  a  vacancy,  perhaps,  on  the  board  of 
judges;  and  the  new  Pope  not  only  had  nu- 
merous pressing  duties  to  claim  his  imdivided 
attention,  but,  indeed,  he  had  no  personal 
motive  to  push  the  trial  vigorously.    Petrarca's 


276     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

lack  of  interest  in  Cola's  fate,  a  coldness  so 
evident  in  the  preceding  letter,  began  to  be 
conquered  under  these  favorable  circumstances. 
His  patriotism,  which  he  had  thought  dead  in 
so  far  as  Cola  was  concerned,  was  stirred  anew, 
and  it  irresistibly  urged  him  to  take  up  his 
pen,  in  order  that  his  voice,  as  in  the  golden 
days  of  the  Hortaioria,  might  again  be  heard 
though  from  a  distance,  and  that  he  might 
again  perform  his  duty  as  a  Roman  citizen, 
and  as  an  Italian  patriot. 


TO  THE  ROMAN  PEOPLE 

{A pp.  Lilt.,  I;  Sine  Titulo,  IV) 

Invincible  people.  Conqueror  of  the  Universe, 
my  People!  It  is  you  whom  I  address  anony- 
mously;^ it  is  with  you  that  I  must  discuss, 
and  briefly,  matters  of  the  highest  importance. 
Give  me  your  attention,  I  beg  and  beseech  you, 
most  illustrious  men.  It  is  your  interests  that 
are  at  stake.  It  is  a  question,  I  repeat,  of 
great  importance,  nay  of  the  greatest  impor- 
tance, one  to  which  aU  other  earthly  questions 
must  give  way.  Perchance  you  are  eager  to 
learn  the  facts;  consequently  I  shall  torment 
you  no  longer  with  suspense,  nor  shall  I  en- 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  277 

deavor  to  magnify  with  mere  words  a  question 
which  by  its  very  nature  is  a  most  momentous 
one.  Without  further  preamble,  then,  I  come 
to  the  facts  themselves. 

Your  former  Tribune  is  now — oh  melan- 
choly sight! — the  prisoner  of  a  stranger.  Like 
unto  him  who  steals  under  the  cover  of  dark- 
ness, or  like  an  ordinary  traitor,  he  pleads  his 
cause  in  chains.  Though  brought  before  the 
arbiters  of  the  world  and  the  dispensers  of 
justice,  he  is  denied  the  privilege  of  presenting 
a  legal  defense — a  right  which  has  never  been 
denied  to  even  the  most  sacrilegious  wretch.' 
But  perhaps  his  suffering  such  treatment  is 
not  altogether  undeserved;  for,  at  the  moment 
when  his  enterprise  gave  promise  of  a  most 
glorious  success,  at  that  very  moment  did  he 
abandon  the  flourishing  republic,  which  had 
been  planted  and  had  taken  deep  root  (so  to 
speak)  in  his  genius  and  his  hands.  Most 
undeserved,  however,  is  the  penalty  inflicted 
upon  Rome.  Formerly  her  citizens  were  in- 
violable and  exempt  from  punishment  under 
the  protection  of  their  laws.  But  today  they 
are  dishonored  and  outraged  everywhere,  in 
obedience  to  the  fell  caprices  of  everybody 
and  anybody.    The  offenders,  moreover,  not 


278      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

only  do  not  incur  any  infamy  for  their  crime, 
but  on  the  contrary  receive  high  praise  as 
men  of  virtue ! 

Be  no  longer  in  ignorance,  illustrious  men, 
of  the  charges  preferred  against  him  who  was 
once  your  head  and  ruler,  but  who  is  now — 
shall  I  say  your  feUow-citizen  or  your  exile? 
You  will  hear  facts  which  may  or  may  not  be 
known  to  you,  but  which  will  surely  M  you 
with  wonder  and  indignation.  He  is  accused, 
not  of  neglecting,  but  of  defending  the  cause 
of  Hberty;  and  he  is  pronounced  guilty,  not 
for  having  deserted,  but  for  having  mounted 
the  Capitol.  This,  finally,  is  the  chief  charge 
against  him,  a  crime  to  be  atoned  for  on  the 
scaffold:  that  he  has  had  the  presumption  to 
affirm  that  even  today  the  Roman  empire  is 
at  Rome  and  at  the  disposal  of  the  people  of 
Rome. 

Oh  ungodly  age!  oh  grim  envy!  oh  imheard- 
of  hatred!  What  dost  Thou  now,  O  Christ, 
infallible  and  incorruptible  Judge  of  all  things  ? 
Where  are  thine  eyes,  with  which  thou  art 
wont  to  dispel  the  mists  of  human  misery? 
Whither  hast  thou  turned  thy  gaze?  Why 
dost  thou  not  end  this  infamous  trial  with 
thy  forked  Ughtning?^    Though  we  be   un- 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  279 

worthy,  look  thou  upon  us  and  take  pity. 
Behold  our  enemies — ^thine  enemies  as  well — 
how  they  have  multipHed!  Behold  with  what 
unholy  hatred  they  hate  us,  and  thee !  Judge, 
we  beseech  thee,  between  two  causes  so  utterly 
imlike.  Finally,  let  thy  countenance  pronounce 
judgment,  and  let  thine  eyes  behold  justice. 

Surely,  there  is  no  cause  for  indignation  or 
for  wonder  that  any  nation,  or  that  all  nations 
(as  we  have  seen),  should  have  desired  freedom 
from  the  yoke  of  Rome,  just  and  easy  though 
that  yoke  was.  For  there  dwells  in  the  heart 
of  man  an  innate  love  of  Kberty,  which  is  often 
inconsiderate  and  rash.  Often  a  false  sense  of 
shame  forbids  men  to  obey  their  superiors,  and 
those  who  would  better  have  played  their  role 
in  subordinate  positions  often  rise  to  unfit 
command.  Consequently  the  world  becomes 
confused  and  chaotic.  Hence  it  is  that,  in 
place  of  dignified  command,  we  often  find 
shameful  servitude;  and  in  place  of  just  sub- 
jection, unjust  command.  Were  it  not  so, 
human  afifairs  would  be  better  ordered,  and 
the  world  would  be  in  healthier  vigor,  if  Rome, 
its  head,  were  still  uninjured. 

If  my  words  be  not  convincing,  then  beheve 
in  past  experience.    When,  I  ask,  was  there 


28o     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

such  peace,  such  tranquillity,  such  justice; 
when  was  such  tribute  paid  to  honesty,  when 
were  the  good  so  readily  rewarded  and  the 
evil  punished;  when  were  human  affairs  so 
well  administered  as  when  the  world  had  but 
one  head,  and  that  head  was  Rome?  At 
what  time  did  God,  the  Lover  of  peace  and  of 
justice,  condescend  to  be  bom  of  the  Virgin 
and  to  visit  the  earth  ?**  Every  living  creature 
possesses  but  one  head;  and  the  world,  which 
the  poet  calls  the  Great  Body,^  should  be  con- 
tent with  but  one  temporal  head.  It  would  be 
monstrous  and  unnatural  for  any  creature  to 
possess  two  heads.  How  much  more  terrible 
and  portentous,  then,  is  an  animal  with  a 
thousand  different  heads  biting  and  rending 
one  another  in  turn?  Even  granting  that 
several  heads  are  possible,  surely  none  ought 
to  doubt  that  one  of  these  should  curb  and 
hold  all  the  others  in  check,  so  that  the  peace 
of  the  body  as  a  whole  may  remain  undis- 
turbed. 

We  have  countless  proofs,  and  the  authority 
of  the  most  learned  scholars  as  well,  to  the 
effect  that,  both  in  heaven  and  on  earth, 
oneness  of  rule  has  ever  been  of  the  greatest 
advantage.    Omnipotent  God  has  declared  in 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  281 

manifold  ways  his  will  that  this  supreme  head 
should  be  none  other  than  Rome.*^  He  has 
ennobled  her  with  the  glories  of  peace  and  of 
war,  and  has  made  of  her  a  matchless  wonder, 
surpassing  in  all  the  virtues. 

The  human  mind  daily  rejoices  in  its  own 
perversity.  If,  then,  notwithstanding  the  truth 
of  the  above,  any  nation  (as  I  have  already 
said)  should  have  preferred  a  dangerous  and 
doubtful  liberty  to  the  safe  and  wholesome 
authority  of  the  common  mother,  some  indul- 
gence could  be  had  for  its  arrogance — or  for 
its  ignorance.  But  who  can  hear  with  im- 
ruffled  brow  that  learned  men  are  discussing 
the  question  whether  or  not  the  Roman  empire 
be  at  Rome  ?  I  suppose  we  are  to  assume  that 
the  empires  of  the  Parthians  and  the  Persians 
and  the  Medes  are  respectively  in  the  power 
of  the  Parthians  and  the  Persians  and  the 
Medes.  And  will  the  Roman  empire  alone, 
then,  have  no  fixed  abode  ?  Who  can  stomach 
this  insult?  Who  would  not  rather  vomit  it 
forth  and  cast  it  out  completely  ? 

If  the  Roman  empire  be  not  at  Rome,  pray 
where  is  it?  Forsooth,  if  it  is  to  be  found 
elsewhere,  it  is  no  longer  the  empire  of  the 
Romans,    but   of   those   among   whom   fickle 


282     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Fortune  has  placed  it.'  Roman  generals,  to 
be  sure,  often  fought  to  defend  the  needs  of 
the  empire  in  the  lands  of  the  extreme  East, 
and  in  those  of  the  extreme  West;  often  they 
fought  in  the  regions  ruled  by  Boreas  and  in 
those  ruled  by  Auster.  But  the  Roman 
empire  itself,  in  the  meantime,  remained  firmly 
fixed  at  Rome.  Rome  it  was  that  judged 
whether  Roman  generals  were  to  be  praised 
or  censured.  On  the  Capitol  was  it  decided 
who  should  be  honored  and  who  punished, 
who  should  enter  the  city  as  a  private  citizen, 
and  who  should  receive  an  ovation  or  a  triumph. 
It  is  a  positive  fact  that,  even  after  the  tyranny 
of  Juhus  Caesar  (or  monarchy  if  we  so  prefer), 
the  Roman  emperors,  although  already  assigned 
a  place  in  the  council  of  the  gods,  sought  sanc- 
tion for  their  deeds  either  from  the  Senate  or  from 
the  Roman  people,  and,  according  as  this  sanc- 
tion was  given  or  withheld,  they  accomphshed 
their  undertakings,  or  abandoned  them.  Emper- 
ors, therefore,  may  roam  about;  but  the  seat  of 
the  empire  remains  ever  firm  and  immovable. 

We  must  suppose,  therefore,  that  Vergil  was 
speaking  of  the  perpetuity  of  the  Roman  empire 
and  not  of  the  temporal  existence  of  the 
Romans  themselves,  when  he  said: 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  283 

While  Capitol  abides  in  place, 
The  mansion  of  the  Aeneian  race, 
And  throned  upon  that  moveless  base 
Rome's  father  sits  sublime.^ 

For  by  these  words  Vergil  was  promising  to 
the  two  youths'  not  one  hundred  nor  one 
thousand  years  of  glory,  but  immortality  itself. 
And  that  no  one  may  consider  my  words  mere 
flattery,  imworthy  both  for  me  to  speak  and 
for  you  Romans  to  hear,  I  shall  now  make  a 
necessary  digression. 

I  am  well  aware  that,  in  this  matter  of  empire, 
Vergil  was  rebuked  by  St.  Augustine,  in  a  cer- 
tain passage,  and  not  unjustly;  but  presently, 
and  in  the  same  passage,  he  is  most  justly 
excused  by  the  same  St.  Augustine.  When  the 
poet  represents  Jove  as  speaking  of  you, 
O  Romans,  he  says: 

Then,  with  his  nurse's  wolf-skin  girt, 
Shall  Romulus  the  line  assert, 
Invite  them  to  his  new-raised  home, 
And  call  the  martial  city  Rome." 

And,  adding  the  element  of  perpetuity  to  the 

prophecy    of    the    Roman    origin,    the    poet 

continues: 

No  date,  no  goal  I  here  ordain: 
Theirs  is  an  endless,  boundless  reign." 


284     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

f 
At  this  point  St.  Augustine  rightly  remarks: 

how,  indeed,  is  he  [Jove]  able  to  grant  an  endless 
empire,  who  never  has  granted  nor  can  grant 
anything  whatsoever,  having  no  power  beyond 
that  of  any  other  wretched  mortal,  and  being 
not  honored,  but  burdened  down  and  oppressed 
by  the  false  belief  in  his  divinity  ?  But  I  pass 
over  the  question  concerning  the  author  of 
the  Roman  empire,  for  it  is  certain  that  it  was 
granted  by  none  other  than  Omnipotent  God, 
who  rules  with  undisputed  sway  both  in  heaven 
and  on  earth,  and  from  whose  power  all  other 
authority  is  derived.  St.  Augustine  next  in- 
quires where  this  empire  is  situated?  "Has 
it  its  abode  in  heaven  or  on  earth  ?  Undoubt- 
edly on  earth,"  he  answers;  "and  even  were 
it  in  heaven,  heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away," 
which  God  himself  has  created.  How  much 
sooner,  then,  will  that  pass  away  which  Romu- 
lus has  founded  ?"'^ 

Thus  speaks  St.  Augustine  in  denial  of 
Vergil's  statements.  And,  surely,  it  is  most 
clear  that  all  kingdoms,  and  whatever  else 
appears  grand  and  magnificent  to  our  eyes, 
even  though  not  sooner,  will  inevitably  fall 
into  ruin  when  heaven  and  earth  will  be  shaken 
from  their  foundation  by  the  arm  of  Him  who 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  285 

did  create  them,  and  who  will  call  into  being 
a  new  heaven  and  a  new  earth."*  For,  being 
Truth  itself.  He  lies  not,^^  ^g  ^oes  Jupiter. 
His  is  the  kingdom  without  beginning  and 
without  end,  of  which  it  is  written:  "And  of 
his  kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end."'^ 

Vergil  may,  perchance,  have  been  ignorant 
of  this  prophecy;  for,  though  God  had  endowed 
him  with  a  surpassing  genius  and  power  of 
expression,  he  had  denied  him  the  knowledge 
of  those  truths  which  were  hid  from  the  wise 
and  were  to  be  revealed  to  little  ones.'^  But 
surely  Vergil  clearly  understood  that  all  the 
kingdoms  of  this  earth,  having  a  beginning,  are 
destined  to  perish.  He  was  consequently 
extremely  cautious.  If  in  any  passage  of  his 
works  he  promised  immortahty  to  the  Roman 
empire,  it  will  be  observed  that  he  was  not 
speaking  in  his  own  person,  but  that  he  placed 
the  words  in  the  mouth  of  Jove,  so  that  the 
lying  prophecy  and  the  false  promise  are  both 
to  be  attributed  to  the  lying  god.'*  In  other 
words,  Vergil  employed  the  falsehood  of  another 
to  gratify  the  vanity  of  the  Roman  people. 
But  elsewhere,  when  he  wished  to  voice  his 
personal  opinion  in  this  regard,  that  same 
Vergil  did  not  remain  silent  as  to  the  truth, 


286     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

but  spoke  of  the  "great  Roman  state  and 
kingdoms  destined  to  perish."'' 

Who  does  not  clearly  reahze  the  immense 
chasm  between  an  endless  reign  and  kingdoms 
destined  to  perish?  In  the  latter  passage 
Vergil  was  the  spokesman;  in  the  former, 
Jove;  in  the  latter,  the  man  of  genius;  in  the 
former,  the  false  and  lying  god.  It  is  to  this 
effect,  though  in  different  words,  that  St. 
Augustine  first  accuses,  and  then  excuses 
Vergil;  and  the  things  which  I  have  already 
said,  and  those  which  I  am  about  to  say,  are 
in  harmony  with  this  judgment. 

It  was  likewise  a  Roman  who  wrote:  "All 
that  is  born  must  perish  and,  in  the  very  process 
of  gaining  added  strength,  advances  toward 
decay.  "^^  Hence  all  things  will  waste  away, 
if  they  continue  to  exist.  If  the  end  of  all 
things  be  old  age,  then  surely  all  things  will 
become  weak  and  aged,  unless  they  are  already 
so.  AU  that  now  stands  in  vigor  will  likewise 
fall,  and  if  old  age  does  not  precede  the  fall, 
it  will  at  least  attend  it.  There  is  no  possible 
exception  to  this  rule,  whether  the  things  of 
this  world  be  granted  a  long  or  a  short  existence. 
Sooner  or  later  all  created  things  will  waste 
away  and  die.    Fickle  Fortune  will  turn  her 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  287 

wheel  without  cessation,  and  will  whirl  ephem- 
eral kingdoms  from  race  to  race.  In  com- 
phance  with  her  every  whim,  she  will  make 
kings  of  slaves,  and  slaves  of  kings,  and  she 
will  hurl  her  irresistible  might  against  the 
city  of  Rome  and  against  the  world  of  the 
Romans. 

For  a  long  time  and  in  lamentable  ways, 
O  excellent  men,  has  Fortime  directed  her 
power  chiefly  against  you,  who  have  become 
an  object  of  compassion  to  many,  perhaps, 
though  no  one  has  hastened  to  render  assistance. 
And  Fortune  wiU  continue  to  vex  you.  I  am 
positive  of  this,  and  I  grieve  over  it.  I  am 
more  angered  thereat  than  one  could  beHeve 
possible;  but  I  do  not  know  what  else  I  can 
do.  I  do  not  feel  particularly  distressed  that 
Fortune  has  exercised  her  privileges  over  you 
as  over  the  rest  of  mankind,  and  that,  in  order 
to  prove  herself  absolute  mistress  of  human 
affairs,  she  has  not  feared  to  assault  the  very 
head  of  the  world.  I,  too,  have  experienced 
her  violence;  I,  too,  have  known  her  fickle 
moods. 

I  can  iU  tolerate,  however,  the  vain  bragging 
of  certain  so-called  invincible  nations,  whose 
heads  are  raised  in  such  wanton  insolence, 


288     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

though  their  necks  still  bear  the  traces  of  the 
Roman  yoke.  And  now — oh  shame  and  tale 
incredible! — to  pass  over  many  other  serious 
wrongs,  now  the  question  is  raised  whether 
or  not  the  Roman  empire  be  at  Rome!  In 
truth,  where  now  the  wild  forests  rule,  there 
may  some  day  arise  the  palaces  of  kings;  and 
where  now  are  halls  resplendent  with  the  glow 
of  gold,  the  eager  flocks  may  some  day  go  forth 
to  pasture,  and  the  wandering  shepherd  may 
roam  in  the  apartments  of  kings.  I  do  not 
underestimate  the  power  of  Fortune.  As  she 
has  destroyed  other  cities,  so  can  she  totally 
overthrow,  with  equal  ease  but  with  greater 
ruin,  the  very  queen  of  cities,  a  thing,  alas! 
which  she  has  already  accomplished  in  great 
measure.  This,  however,  she  can  never  bring 
to  pass:  that  the  Roman  empire  be  anywhere 
else  than  at  Rome.  The  moment  it  begins 
to  reside  elsewhere,  that  very  moment  does 
it  cease  to  be  Roman. 

Your  wretched  fellow-citizen  does  not  deny 
having  made  such  assertions,  and  continues  to 
adhere  to  his  previous  statements.  This  is 
the  terrible  crime  for  which  his  life  now  hangs 
in  the  balance.  He  adds  (and  I  believe  that 
he  speaks  the  truth)   that  he  reached  these 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  289 

conclusions  only  after  consulting  many  wise 
men;  and  he  demands  that  counsel  and  the 
opportimity  to  present  his  defense  be  given 
to  him.  This  is  denied  him;  and  unless  divine 
mercy  and  your  good-will  intercede  in  his 
behalf,  it  is  all  over.  Innocent  and  without 
counsel,  he  will  surely  be  condemned.  A  great 
many  feel  pity  for  him;  in  truth  there  is  hardly 
one  who  does  not,  except  those  whom  it  would 
befit  to  pity  and  to  pardon  the  sins  of  others, 
and  not  to  envy  them  their  virtues. 

There  are  not  lacking  in  this  city  prominent 
jurists  who  maintain  that,  according  to  civil 
law,  this  maxim  of  the  illustrious  prisoner 
could  be  proved  in  the  clearest  way.  There 
are  not  lacking  others  who  say  that,  were  they 
permitted  to  speak  freely,  they  could  adduce 
many  reliable  instances  from  the  pages  of 
history  which  would  corroborate  that  same 
maxim.  But  now  no  one  dares  murmur  a 
syllable,  except  in  a  remote  comer,  or  in  the 
darkness,  or  in  fear.  I  myself,  who  am  writ- 
ing to  you,  should  not  refuse,  perchance,  to 
die  for  the  truth,  if  my  death  would  seem  to  be 
of  any  advantage  to  the  state.  And  yet  I, 
too,  remain  silent,  nor  do  I  aflSx  my  name  to  this 
letter,  supposing  that  the  style  will  be  sufficient 


290     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

to  reveal  the  writer.    I  add  only  this:   that  it 
is  a  Roman  citizen  who  addresses  you. 

If  the  case  were  being  tried  in  a  safe  place, 
and  before  a  just  judge,  and  not  at  the  tribunal 
of  our  enemies,  I  feel  confident  that,  with  truth 
illuminating  my  soul  and  with  God  directing 
my  tongue  and  my  pen,  I  could  speak  convin- 
cing words,  words  from  which  it  would  result 
clearer  than  day  that  the  Roman  empire, 
though  long  exhausted  and  oppressed  by  the 
blows  of  Fortune,  and  though  seized  at  various 
times  by  Spaniards,  Africans,  Greeks,  Gauls, 
and  Germans,  is  yet,  how  limited  soever  it  may 
be,  at  Rome,  and  nowhere  else  than  at  Rome; 
words,  I  repeat,  which  would  clearly  prove 
that  there  the  Roman  empire  will  remain, 
though  nothing  were  left  of  the  stupendous 
city  but  the  bare  rock  of  the  Capitol.  Further- 
more, I  should  prove  that,  at  the  time  when 
Rome  was  not  yet  at  the  mercy  of  barbarian 
hands  and  when  the  Roman  Caesars  ruled  the 
world,  even  then  aU  the  rights  of  empire  rested 
not  with  the  emperors,  but  on  the  citadel  of 
the  Capitol  and  with  the  Roman  people.  I 
should  clearly  prove,  finally,  whether  or  not 
It  is  truly  a  fundamental  principle  of  govern- 
ment that  rulers  who  do  not  possess  the  con- 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  291 

fidence  of  their  subjects  shall  not  dictate  the 
laws  of  the  land. 

Time  glides  along,  and  everything  is  still 
in  an  unsettled  state,  a  delay,  perchance,  which 
has  been  granted  from  on  high  in  order  that 
a  question  of  such  great  importance  may  be 
decided  in  the  light  of  day.''  This  is  a  boon 
for  which  but  recently  you  did  not  dare  even 
to  hope.  Consequently  it  has  been  impossible 
for  me  to  check  one  request  which  seems  to 
concern  most  deeply  your  dignity  and  that  of 
the  Roman  name.  The  faith  which  makes  me 
entwine  you  and  yoiu:  city  with  an  unparalleled 
love  and  veneration,  urges  me  to  write.  I 
therefore  beg  and  beseech  you,  illustrious  men, 
not  to  abandon  your  fellow-citizen  in  his  hour 
of  extreme  need.  Send  a  formal  embassy, 
point  out  that  he  belongs  to  you,  and  claim  him 
as  your  own.  Though  they  may  strive  to 
wrest  from  you  all  claim  to  the  empire,  they 
have  not,  as  yet,  reached  that  degree  of  insanity 
as  to  dare  deny  that  you  have  the  right  of 
jurisdiction  over  your  own  citizens.  Forsooth, 
if  this  man  has  sinned,  it  is  at  Rome  that  he  has 
sinned.  And  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  you 
should  pass  judgment  upon  sins  that  are  com- 
mitted at  Rome — unless  the  common  rights 


292      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

of  law  be  torn  from  you  who  are  the  very 
founders  and  organizers  of  law,  and  who  once 
framed  laws  for  the  nations  of  the  world. 

Where,  indeed,  can  crimes  be  punished  with 
greater  justice  than  in  that  region  where  they 
were  committed?  There,  the  very  scene  calls 
back  the  crime  to  the  mind  of  the  transgressor — 
itself  no  small  part  of  the  punishment — and  the 
sight  of  the  penalty  meted  out  either  soothes 
or  terrifies  the  spectators.  Many,  or  rather 
all,  right-minded  men  hold  that  your  Tribune 
deserves  to  be  rewarded  and  not  punished. 
If  this  be  so,  where  will  he  more  appropriately 
receive  his  reward  than  in  that  city  where  he 
performed  the  deeds  which  have  earned  it  for 
him?  In  no  other  place  is  reward  more 
worthily  given  than  upon  the  very  scene  of 
brave  actions,  in  order  that  the  beholders  may 
be  moved  by  the  reward  to  foUow  the  good 
example. 

Have  confidence,  then,  and  demand  the 
return  of  your  citizen.  You  wiU  make  no  new 
or  imjust  demand;  on  the  other  hand,  you  will 
be  guilty  of  a  positive  wrong  if  you  remain 
silent.  If  the  plea  of  a  common  country  be 
advanced  in  defense  of  his  being  pimished  in 
the  city  where  he  is  now  held  captive,  how 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  293 

much  more  truly  is  Rome  his  common  country, 
the  city  where  he  was  bom  and  reared,  and 
where  he  performed  all  the  deeds  of  which  he 
is  now  accused?  Here,  on  the  contrary,  he 
has  done  absolutely  nothing  deserving  either 
praise  or  blame. 

If,  however,  contrary  to  the  traditions  of 
your  ancestors,  your  courage  fails  you  in  the 
hour  of  adversity;  if  the  times  have  become 
so  degenerate  that  those  whose  fathers  deemed 
no  difficulty  insurmountable  now  consider  it 
an  act  of  rashness  to  demand  justice,  then  at 
least  ask  for  that  which  can  always  be  asked 
of  any  barbarian  nation  where  laws  exist: 
insist  that  your  citizen  be  given  a  pubHc  trial, 
and  that  he  be  not  denied  the  right  of  counsel. 
Demand  that  he  whose  every  action  was  per- 
formed in  the  Ught  of  day,  and  who  shed  as 
much  splendor  upon  this  world  as  is  given  to 
the  lot  of  mortal — demand  that  this  man  be 
not  condemned  in  the  darkness.  Make  it 
perfectly  clear,  finally,  that  you  will  not  for- 
sake the  cause  and  the  fortunes  of  your  fellow- 
citizen.  Resist  the  injustice;  forbid  the  con- 
summation of  so  imspeakable  a  crime.  Protect 
him,  if  you  deem  him  innocent;  pass  sentence 
upon  him,  if  you  deem  him  a  criminal  or  a 


294     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

culprit;  but  at  least  obviate  the  possibility 
of  his  being  sentenced  according  to  the  caprice 
of  anyone  who  may  so  desire. 

Bring  that  aid  which  you  can  and  should 
bring  to  your  Tribune,  or,  if  that  title  has  lost 
its  spell,  to  your  fellow-citizen  who  deserves 
well  of  the  republic.  Foremost  among  his 
claims  is  the  fact  that  he  has  revived  an  impor- 
tant question,  a  question  of  great  interest  to 
the  world,  but  which  had  been  forgotten  and 
buried  in  the  sleep  of  many  centuries,  the 
question  which  alone  can  lead  to  the  reforma- 
tion of  the  state  and  can  usher  in  the  golden 
age.  Succor  this  man.  Do  not  esteem  lightly 
the  safety  of  that  one  who,  in  your  behalf, 
has  exposed  himself  to  a  thousand  dangers 
and  to  everlasting  odium.  Bethink  ye  of  his 
plans  and  purposes;  remember  in  what  con- 
dition your  city  was,  and/  how  suddenly, 
through  the  wisdom  and  the  efforts  of  a  single 
man,  not  only  Rome  but  all  Italy  rose  to  great 
hopes.  Remember  how  quickly  the  Italic 
name  and  the  glory  of  Rome  were  restored  to 
their  ancient  splendor.  Recollect  the  deep 
fear  and  the  grief  of  your  enemies,  the  exultant 
joy  of  your  friends,  the  lofty  expectations  of 
the  nations;  recollect  how  the  course  of  events 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  295 

was  changecj,  how  the  face  of  the  earth  was 
altered,  how  different  became  the  desires  of 
men,  and  how  everything  beneath  the  vault  of 
heaven  assumed  a  different  aspect.  So  marvel- 
ously  and  so  rapidly  was  the  world  changed! 

He  held  the  reins  of  government  not  longer 
than  seven  months,  so  that  I  can  scarcely 
conceive  of  a  greater  or  a  nobler  attempt  in 
the  history  of  the  world.  Had  he  continued 
imto  the  end  even  as  he  had  begun,  his  work 
would  have  seemed  that  of  a  god  rather  than 
of  a  mortal.  For  that  matter,  anything  well 
done  by  man  is  divinely  done.  This  man, 
therefore,  who  (as  all  know)  toiled  to  enhance 
your  glory  and  not  to  gratify  his  personal 
ambitions,  deserves  your  imhesitating  favor. 
Fortune  must  be  blamed  for  the  issue.  If  any 
listlessness  succeeded  to  his  enthusiastic  begin- 
ning, attribute  it  to  the  inconstancy  and  the 
frailty  of  human  nature.  While  yet  ye  may, 
protect  your  fellow-citizen  against  a  grave 
wrong,  ye  who  formerly,  and  with  great  peril 
to  yourselves,  defended  the  Greeks  against  the 
Macedonians,  the  SiciHans  against  the  Car- 
thaginians, the  Campanians  against  the 
Samnites,  and  the  Etruscans  against  the 
Gauls. 


296     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Your  resources,  I  know,  are  sadly  depleted; 
but  never  were  your  fathers  imbued  with 
greater  courage  than  when  Roman  poverty, 
the  mother  of  virtues,  was  held  in  honor.  I 
am  fully  aware  that  your  power  has  dwindled; 
but  beheve  me,  if  a  single  drop  of  the  old 
blood  still  courses  through  your  veins,  you  are 
possessed  of  no  shght  majesty,  of  no  indifferent 
authority.  Dare  something,  I  adjure  you,  in 
memory  of  your  past  history,  for  the  ashes  and 
the  glory  of  your  ancestors,  in  the  name  of  the 
empire,  out  of  mercy  for  Jesus  Christ,  who 
commands  us  to  love  our  neighbors  and  to 
succor  the  afficted.  Dare  something,  I  be- 
seech you,  the  more  so  that  any  demand  on 
your  part  is  honorable,  whereas  silence  is 
dishonorable  and  disgraceful.  Dare  something, 
if  not  for  his  safety,  then  at  least  to  preserve 
your  own  self-respect — ^if  you  desire  to  be  held 
in  any  esteem. 

Nothing  is  less  Roman  than  fear.  I  predict 
to  you  that  if  you  are  afraid,  if  you  despise 
your  own  worth,  many  will  likewise  despise 
you,  and  no  one  will  fear  you.  But  if  you 
begin  to  make  it  clear  that  you  will  not  be 
spurned,  you  will  be  respected  far  and  wide, 
a  fact  which  was  frequently  made  manifest 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  297 

in  the  olden  times,  and  again  recently  when  he 
of  whom  I  speak  governed  the  repubhc.  Be 
unanimous  in  your  demands;  let  the  world 
realize  that  the  voice  of  the  Roman  people  is 
a  unit.  No  one  will  then  deride  or  mock  you; 
no  one  but  wiU  either  respect  it,  or  fear  it. 
Be  sure  to  exact  the  return  of  this  prisoner,  or 
to  demand  justice.  The  latter,  surely,  will 
not  be  denied.  And  you,  who  once,  with  an 
insignificant  embassy,  did  free  a  king  of  Egypt 
from  the  siege  of  the  Syrians,"  do  ye  now 
liberate  your  fellow-citizen  from  undeserved 
imprisonment. 

NOTES 

1.  The  word  employed  by  Petrarca,  clam  (Frac,  III, 
p.  493)  must  refer  simply  to  the  fact  that  the  present 
letter  to  the  Roman  people,  because  of  its  outspoken 
sentiments,  was  included  by  the  author  himself  in  the 
group  Sine  Titido.  In  those  letters  Petrarca  deemed  it 
safer  to  suppress  the  names  of  the  persons  to  whom  they 
were  addressed,  expunging  also  his  own  name.  Hence 
the  word  clam  must  mean  "anonymously,"  and  hardly 
"in  confidence"  (Robinson  and  Rolfe,  p.  348);  and 
this  is  proved  by  Petrarca's  statement  (III,  p.  500), 
neque  his  ipsis  ad  vos  scriptis  meum  nomen  adiicio,  on 
the  ground  that  the  style  would  be  sufficient  to  reveal 
the  writer. 

2.  De  Sade  remarks  (III,  234) :  "  Je  ne  comprens  pas 


298     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

pourquoi  cette  grace  qu'on  accorde  a  tous  les  criminels 
lui  fut  refusee  sous  le  Pontificat  le  plus  doux."  But 
Robinson  and  Rolfe  (p.  349):  "Rienzo  was  accused  of 
heresy,  and  it  was  quite  in  accord  with  the  jurispru- 
dence of  the  inquisition  to  refuse  him  counsel." 

3.  From  this  sentence  it  is  again  clear  (as  we  have 
already  shown  in  n.  i  to  Fam.,  XIII,  6)  that  the  trial 
was  not  over  by  August  10,  1352;  for,  according  to  the 
calculations  there  made,  the  present  letter  is  later  in 
date  than  Fam.,  XIII,  6,  and  even  at  the  writing  of  this 
letter  Cola's  trial  was  not  at  an  end. 

4.  Dante,  in  Convito  IV,  5,  expounds  at  great  length 
the  mediaeval  theme  that  the  birth  and  the  unparalleled 
growth  of  Rome  were  both  predestined  "in  the  most 
high  and  divine  Consistory  of  the  Trinity";  and, 
speaking  of  Rome,  he  concludes:  "I,  surely,  am  of  the 
firm  opinion  that  the  stones  in  her  walls  are  worthy  of 
reverence,  and  that  the  soil  upon  which  she  rests  is 
more  worthy  than  that  which  is  said  and  proved  by 
men." 

5.  Vergil,  Aen.,  vi.  727. 

6.  To  add  still  another  instance  to  the  many  already 
cited,  we  shall  give  the  following  lines  from  a  letter 
written  to  Emperor  Charles  IV  (Fam.,  XXIII,  2,  Frac, 
III,  p.  193):  "Aye,  Rome  is  the  mother-country  of  all; 
she  is  the  head  of  the  universe,  the  queen  of  the  world 
and  of  cities,  abounding  in  so  many  noble  examples 
that,  once  seen,  she  readily  inspirits  the  soul."  Cf .  also 
Fam.,  XI,  7,  given  in  full  in  n.  3  to  letter  Fam.,  XI,  16. 

7.  In  the  Africa  Scipio  grieves  at  hearing  that  the 
honor  of  the  empire  was  one  day  to  fall  into  barbarian 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  299 

hands;  but  his  father  consoles  him  by  saying  (Book  II, 
287-89) :  "  Cease  thy  weeping,  I  beseech  thee,  and  lay 
aside  thy  fear:  the  glory  of  the  Latins  will  live,  and  the 
empire  will  ever  be  called  by  the  same  name,  the 
Roman  Empire." 

But  Petrarca  might  have  cited  pontifical  authority 
for  this  statement  of  fact.  In  a  letter  which  is  supposed 
to  have  been  addressed  to  Francesco  Nelli,  and  to  have 
been  written  (at  Milan,  it  seems)  in  1357,  Petrarca 
tells  the  following  interesting  story  of  Pope  John  XXII 
(Sine  Titulo,  XVII,  Quo  te  cumque  converteris;  num- 
bered XV  in  the  Basle  ed.  of  1581,  pp.  727,  728): 

"Our  own  listlessness  is  responsible  for  the  daring  of 
these  cowards.  They  take  unholy  joy  in  our  patience, 
and  at  the  same  time  they  hate  us.  Indeed,  that  thou 
mayest  be  most  profoundly  astonished,  know  thou 
that  they  have  an  inward  fear  of  those  for  whom  they 
outwardly  show  contempt.  The  latter  is  merely 
feigned,  the  former  exists  in  reality.  There  are  a 
thousand  proofs  of  their  hatred  and  of  their  terror.  I 
shall  now  relate  an  anecdote  that  will  serve  as  a  proof 
of  both  at  once.  Though  this  story  was  at  first  kept 
secret,  ultimately  it  got  abroad,  so  that  it  became 
known  not  only  at  Babylon  but  even  in  more  distant 
lands. 

"The  incident  occurred  at  the  time  when  that 
Supreme  Pontiff  [John  XXII]  had  organized  a  decrepit 
expedition  of  the  priestly  soldiery  with  the  purpose  of 
reducing  Italy  to  the  condition  of  a  province,  and 
above  all,  of  destroying  the  city  of  the  Milanese.  It 
was  at  the  time,  I  repeat,  when  the  Father  of  the 
Christians  was  rendered  so  extremely  furious  by  his 
thorough  and  complete  hatred  of  this  Christian  land 
and  Christian  city,  that  one  would  not  have  thought 


300      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

this  land  Italy,  but  Syria  or  Egypt;  and  this  city  not 
Milan,  but  Damascus  or  Memphis. 

"For  the  accomplishment  of  this  holy  and  pious 
undertaking,  the  Pontiff  chose  one  of  the  Fathers  of 
the  Sacred  College  [Beltram  de  Poggetto],  his  own  son, 
as  many  said;  and,  indeed,  in  addition  to  his  figure  [cf. 
Greg.,  VI,  i88,  n.  i,  and  reading,  with  him,  secundum 
formam  instead  of  the  Basle /a worn],  a  strong  resem- 
blance and  the  ferocity  of  his  character  strengthened 
the  belief.  He  did  not  equip  him  in  the  manner  of  an 
apostle,  but  in  that  of  a  robber;  not  with  the  signs  of 
the  virtues  and  with  the  power  of  working  wonders, 
but  with  the  ensigns  of  the  camps  and  with  wonderful 
legions.  Thus  equipped  did  he  send  him  into  these 
lands,  not  as  a  second  Peter,  but  as  a  second  Hannibal. 
In  the  war  which  ensued.  Omnipotent  God,  according 
to  his  wont,  humbled  the  proud  and  raised  the  lowly, 
and  fought  openly  on  the  side  of  justice. 

"There  was  in  that  same  troop  of  cardinals  a  certain 
man  who  likewise  nourished  an  insatiable  hatred  for  us. 
He  was  a  man  of  boundless  arrogance,  whom  I,  at  that 
time  a  mere  boy,  knew  by  sight  and  whose  character  I 
execrated  with  all  the  energy  of  my  feeble  youth.  This 
man  was  dear  to  the  Pontiff  beyond  all  others.  One 
day,  entering  the  papal  cabinet,  he  found  the  Pope 
dismayed  and  distressed  by  the  reports  of  the  war.  In 
fact,  the  onslaught  of  the  war  had,  contrary  to  expec- 
tations, been  checked  on  the  very  threshold  of  this  city, 
which  was  not  then  defended  by  walls,  but,  indeed,  by 
that  which  constitutes  the  very  best  kind  of  wall, 
extraordinary  soldiers  and  very  brave  commanders. 
And  so,  the  besieged  had  frequently  put  the  besiegers 
to  flight;  the  prisons  were  full  to  overflowing  with  the 
hordes  of  captives;  and  the  fields  were  being  fattened 
by  the  blood  of  the  slain. 

"While,  therefore,  matters  were  in  this  state,  and 
since  he  beheld  the  Pope  more  downcast  than  usual, 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  301 

relying  upon  his  great  intimacy  with  the  Pope,  he 
addressed  him  and  said:  'I  wonder,  most  Holy  Father, 
why  it  is  that,  though  thou  art  very  clear-sighted  in 
other  matters,  thou  seest  to  but  little  purpose  in  that 
one  question  which  is  of  especial  and  of  highest  impor- 
tance to  us.' 

"At  these  words  the  Pontiff  raised  his  head,  which 
had  been  weighed  down  by  heavy  cares,  and  said, 
'  Continue.    What  meanest  thou  ?' 

"  Thereupon  that  surpassingly  fine  counselor  replied: 
'I  know  that  thou  desirest  nothing  so  ardently  as  the 
destruction  of  Italy.  To  this  end  are  we  devoting  all 
our  strength,  our  resources,  our  counsels;  to  this  end 
have  we  now  squandered  nearly  all  the  riches  of  the 
church.  We  have  ventured  into  an  inextricable 
labyrinth,  unless  another  way  be  tried.  Behold  now 
our  magnificent  preparations  for  war!  The  edge  of  our 
power  is  being  blvmted  at  the  very  gates  of  Milan,  a  city 
which  thy  cringing  sycophants  asserted  to  be  like  unto 
any  one  of  our  cities,  but  which  by  experience  has  been 
found  to  be  superior  to  them  all.  If  we  are  conquered 
by  a  single  Italian  city,  when  shall  we  conquer  the 
whole  of  Italy?  But  if  thou  wishest,  there  is  a  far 
easier  way  whereby  to  accomplish  this  end.' 

"'What  way,'  exclaimed  the  Pontiff,  'speak,  and 
more  quickly.  For,  over  this  do  I  labor,  this  do  I 
desire,  this  is  the  one  thing  for  which  I  should  be  willing 
to  sell  both  body  and  soul.' 

"And  the  other:  'Thou  canst  all  things.  Whatso- 
ever thou  orderest  is  accomplished.  Why,  therefore, 
dost  thou  not  deprive  the  city  of  Rome  and  Italy  of 
both  the  papacy  and  the  empire  ?  Why  dost  thou  not 
transfer  that  empire  to  Cahors,  our  native  place,  that 
is  to  say,  to  Gascony  ?  [John  XXII  had  been  Jacques 
d'Euse,  of  Cahors.]  It  is  not  a  difficult  task;  speak, 
and  it  will  be  done.  There  is  no  need  of  arms,  in  which 
we  are  greatly  their  inferiors.    By  a  single  word  wilt 


302      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

thou  triumph  over  thine  enemies.  Thus,  by  trans- 
ferring the  very  summits  of  power  into  our  country, 
thou  wilt  distinguish  us  with  new  honors,  and  thou 
wilt  deprive  that  hateful  race  of  its  double  glory,' 

"At  these  words  the  Pontiff  raised  his  head  and, 
smiling  in  the  midst  of  his  wrath,  replied:  'Thou  hast 
deceived  me  hitherto;  I  had  not  yet  known  thee  to  rave 
like  a  madman.  Knowest  thou  not,  stupid  one,  that 
according  to  the  way  which  thou  didst  deem  to  have  so 
subtly  devised,  both  I  and  my  successors  become 
merely  bishops  of  Cahors,  and  that  the  emperor 
(whosoever  he  may  be)  becomes  a  prefect  of  Gascony  ? 
Knowest  thou  not  that  they  who  would  rule  at  Rome 
in  spiritual  and  in  temporal  matters  would  be,  respec- 
tively, the  real  Pope  and  the  real  Emperor  ?  And  so, 
while  thinking  to  overthrow  the  Italic  name,  thou  art 
elevating  it  to  its  former  dignity.  Therefore,  while  it  is 
so  granted  from  on  high,  let  us  hold  fast  the  reins  of  the 
Roman  pontificate,  and  let  us  bend  our  every  energy  to 
this:  that  Italian  hands  may  never,  perchance,  grasp 
what  is  theirs  by  right.  But  it  is  an  uncertain  matter 
how  long  this  event  can  be  delayed.  Let  us  not  haggle 
about  mere  names;  for,  whether  we  will  it  or  no,  the 
head  and  center  of  all  things  will  still  be  Rome.' 

"Upon  hearing  these  words,  that  sagacious  fool 
blushed  scarlet.  I,  in  truth,  disapprove  of  the  Pope's 
intentions,  but  am  obliged  to  approve  of  his  good  sense; 
for,  though  he  was  consumed  with  undeserved  hatred  of 
us,  he  nevertheless  remembered  and  knew  full  well 
whereon  had  been  founded  the  lofty  structure  from  the 
summit  of  which  he  exhibited  his  pride.  He  clearly 
realized  that  to  impair  the  foundations  would  bring 
on  ruin.  He  therefore  decided  that  it  was  best  to 
remain  quiet  and  to  enjoy  the  papacy  in  silence,  as  if 
over  an  object  obtained  by  theft. 

"I  do  not  know  whether  this  tale  has  been  recounted 
by  others.    I  have  given  it  in  detail  in  order  that,  if 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  303 

thou  hast  already  heard  it,  thou  mayest  know  that  I, 
too,  am  acquainted  with  it;  that  if  thou  hast  not  yet 
heard  it,  in  order  that  thou  mayest  learn  it  from  me, 
and  that,  being  acquainted  with  the  past,  thou  mayest 
not  be  in  ignorance  of  the  present." 

8.  Aeneid,  ix.  448,  449,  tr.  by  Conington,  p.  304. 
After  these  verses  Robinson  and  Rolfe  omit  from  the 
words  Neque  enim  (Frac,  III,  p,  496)  to  Certe  romanus 
(ibid.,  p.  498);  they  give  two  lines,  and  then,  without 
indicating  the  fact,  omit  the  following  15  lines,  from 
Senescent  ergo  (ibid.,  p.  498)  to  Nee  me  angit  (ibid.,  p. 
499).  Again,  there  is  an  omission  from  Si  verum  (ibid., 
p.  500)  to  Ferte  quam  potestis  (ibid.,  p.  502).  These 
omissions  constitute  one-third  of  the  entire  letter. 

9.  Nisus  and  Euryalus. 

10.  Aeneid,  i.  276,  277. 

11.  Aeneid,  i.  278,  279. 

12.  Matt.  24:35;  Mark  13:31;  Luke  21:33. 

13.  St.  Augustine,  Sermo  CV  (alias  29  de  Verbis 
Domini),  in  Migne,  Patrologiae  cursus,  XXXVIII,  col. 
618.  Of  this  Sermo,  chap.  10,  entitled  Terreno  regno 
aeternitas  adulatorie  promissa,  is  as  follows  (cols.  622, 
623): 

"Those  who  have  promised  eternity  to  the  kingdoms 
of  earth,  have  not  been  led  to  do  so  by  truth,  but  have 
lied  from  a  sense  of  adulation.  A  certain  pagan  poet 
represents  Jove  as  speaking,  and  says  of  the  Romans 
[Vergil,  Aen.,  i.  278,  279]: 

No  date,  no  goal  I  here  ordain: 
Theirs  is  an  endless,  boundless  reign. 

But  this  does  not  quite  answer  to  the  truth.    0  thou 
\sc.,  Jove]  who  hast  granted  nothing,  has  this  reign, 


304     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

which  thou  hast  granted  endless  and  boundless,  its 
abode  in  heaven  or  on  earth  ?  Undoubtedly  on  earth. 
And  even  were  it  in  heaven,  heaven  and  earth  shall 
pass  away  [Luke  21:33].  Those  things  shall  pass 
away  which  God  himself  has  created;  how  much 
sooner,  then,  will  that  pass  away  which  Romulus 
has  foimded  ? 

"If  we  should  wish  to  take  Vergil  to  task  for  this, 
and  to  revile  him  for  having  made  such  a  statement,  he 
would  perhaps  take  us  to  one  side  and  say  to  us:  'I, 
too,  know  its  falsity;  but  what  was  I  to  do  to  please  the 
Romans  except  to  employ  this  flattery  and  to  promise 
to  them  something  which  I  knew  to  be  false  ?  And  yet 
I  was  cautious  in  so  doing.  When  I  said:  'Theirs  is 
an  endless,  boimdless  reign,'  I  brought  their  own  Jove 
upon  the  scene  to  speak  those  words.  It  was  not  in 
my  own  person  that  I  spoke  the  falsehood,  but  I 
shouldered  upon  Jove  the  character  of  liar:  for,  just  as 
he  was  a  false  god,  so  was  he  also  a  false  prophet. 
Indeed,  dost  thou  wish  to  feel  certain  that  I  was  aware 
of  this?  In  another  passage,  and  when  I  did  not 
represent  a  Jove  of  stone  as  speaking,  but  when  I  spoke 
in  my  own  person,  I  said  'the  great  Roman  state  and 
kingdoms  destined  to  perish'  [Georg.,  ii.  498].  Thou 
wilt  observe  that  I  said  kingdoms  destined  to  perish. 
I  actually  said  kingdoms  destined  to  perish,  I  did  not 
remain  silent.' 

"And  so  Vergil,  when  speaking  the  truth,  did  not 
conceal  the  fact  that  kingdoms  of  earth  were  destined 
to  perish;  but,  when  flattering  the  Romans,  he 
promised  them  an  endless  regin." 

It  will  be  seen  from  this  citation  that  Petrarca 
follows  St.  Augustine  pretty  closely.  But  where  he 
says  "At  this  point  St.  Augustine  rightly  remarks," 
that  which  follows  is  not  a  direct  quotation  from  St. 
Augustine,  who,  after  the  verses  from  the  Aeneid, 


COLA'S  LIBERATION  URGED  305 

simply  says:  Non  plane  ita  respondet  Veritas.  Regnum 
hoc,  quod  sine  fine  dedisti,  0  qui  nihil  dedisti,  in  terra  est, 
an  in  caelo  ?  Therefore,  the  first  three  lines  printed  in 
italics  in  Fracassetti's  Latin  edition  belong  to  Petrarca 
himself,  and  should  not  have  been  printed  in  italics, 
which  inevitably  imply  a  direct  quotation  from  St. 
Augustine  (Frac,  III,  p.  497). 

14.  Isa.  65:17;  66:22;  II  Pet.  3:13;  Apoc.  21:1. 

15.  Num.  23:19;  John  3:33;   8:26;  Rom.  3:4. 

16.  Luke  1:33. 

17.  Matt.  11:25. 

18.  Cf.  Dante,  Inferno,  I,  70-72,  where  the  shade  of 
Vergil  says  (tr.  by  Longfellow) : 

Sub  Julio  was  I  bom,  though  it  was  late. 
And  lived  at  Rome  under  the  good  Augustus, 
During  the  time  of  false  and  lying  gods. 

19.  Georg.,  ii.  498. 

20.  Sallust,  lugurtha,  2,  3. 

21.  Unfortunately,  the  three  extant  letters  written 
by  Cola  while  he  was  confined  at  Avignon  are  with- 
out dates  (Gabrielli,  Epistolario,  No.  XLVII  to  the 
Archbishop  of  Prague,  and  Nos.  XL VIII,  XLIX  to 
the  Roman  people).  The  trial  may  have  dragged 
on  (cf.  dies  trahitur,  Frac,  III,  500)  for  any  one  of 
many  reasons.  Among  them  we  point  out  the  de- 
parture of  Gui  de  Boulogne,  one  of  the  presumed 
judges,  in  the  early  part  of  September,  1352  (Frac, 
3,  p.  254).  This  cardinal  was  then  sent  to  Paris,  in  an 
endeavor  to  bring  about  a  peace  between  the  kings 
of  France  and  of  England,  who  had  already  fought 
the   battle   of   Crecy,   and  who  were  renewing  their 


3o6     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

preparations  after  the  enforced  truce  caused  by  the 
Black  Death. 

22.  In  the  year  i68  B.C.,  ambassadors  from  Ptolemy 
and  Cleopatra,  rulers  of  Egypt,  reported  to  the  Roman 
Senate  that  Alexandria  was  being  besieged  by  Antio- 
chus,  king  of  Syria  (Livy,  xliv.  19,  9).  The  Senate 
immediately  appointed  an  embassy  composed  of  C. 
Popilius,  C.  Decimius,  and  C.  Hostilius  {ibid.,  xliv.  19, 
13),  instructing  these  envoys  to  visit  both  kings  and  to 
re-establish  peace.  The  envoys  met  Antiochus  at 
Eleusin,  four  miles  away  from  Alexandria;  and  the 
imbending  severity  of  Popilius  compelled  Antiochus  to 
make  peace  at  once  (ibid.,  xlv.  12).  In  the  same  year 
envoys  of  Ptolemy  repaired  to  the  City,  to  thank  the 
Romans,  through  whose  intervention  the  Egyptians 
had  been  freed  from  a  most  wretched  siege,  per  quos 
obsidione  miserrima  liberati  essent  (ibid.,  xlv.  13,  5). 


CHAPTER  XV 
CONCLUSION 

The  correspondence  of  Petrarca  which  deals 
directly  with  the  Roman  revolution  of  Rienzo 
comes  to  an  end  with  the  letter  Sine  Titulo,  IV. 
This  letter  we  have  tentatively  dated  in  the 
latter  part  of  1352,  or  in  the  beginning  of  1353. 
Neither  the  poHtical  career  of  Rienzo,  however, 
nor  Petrarca's  reflections  on  that  career  ceased 
this  early.  In  fact,  Petrarca  never  did  quite 
forget  Rienzo;  and  only  two  years  before  his 
own  death,  he  could  still  draw  a  moral  from 
the  unhappy  fate  of  the  Tribune,  and  in  the 
calm  of  his  advanced  years  he  could  still 
feel  the  heat  of  the  flame  which  had  been 
fanned  so  vigorously  in  the  year  1347.  It  is 
the  purpose  of  this  concluding  chapter,  there- 
fore, briefly  to  foUow  in  Petrarca's  life  the  thin 
thread  of  his  blasted  hopes  in  Rienzo. 

As  we  have  already  seen  (see  introduction 
to  Faw.,XIII,  6),  after  the  fiasco  of  the  com- 
mission of  four  cardinals  appointed  to  reform 
the  government  of  Rome,  the  citizens  of  the 
Urbs  had,  on  St.  Stephen's  day,  December  26, 
135 1,  declared  the  plebeian  Giovanni  Cerroni 
307 


3o8     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

absolute  head  and  master  of  the  city.  His  rule 
came  to  an  end  when  he  fled  in  September, 

1352.  This  flight  threw  Rome  into  a  state  of 
utter  chaos,  a  period  during  which  it  is  difficult 
to  discern  the  true  course  of  events. 

In  this  inextricable  tangle,  it  would  seem  that 
the  Romans  returned  to  the  time-worn  system 
of  senators,  and  elected  to  that  office  Count 
Palatine  BertoldoOrsini  and  StefanelloColonna. 
The  Pope  in  distant  Avignon,  however,  does 
not  seem  to  have  ratffied  the  choice  of  the 
Romans,  and  he  nominated  in  their  stead 
Giovanni  Orsini  and  Pietro  Sciarra  Colonna 
as  senators  for  the  year  1353.  In  other  words, 
in  January,  1353,  there  must  have  been  in 
Rome  four  senators,  two  of  whom  represented 
the  interests  of  Avignon,  the  other  two  the 
wishes  of  the  Romans  themselves.  It  is  there- 
fore safe  to  assume  that  until  February  15, 

1353,  the  control  of  affairs  really  rested  with 
the  people's  choice,  Bertoldo  Orsini  and  Stefa- 
nello  Colonna. 

Stefanello  was  the  grandson  of  Stefano  the 
Elder,  and  we  have  already  pointed  out  {Fam., 
VII,  7,  n.  10)  the  attachment  to  the  Colonna 
of  Petrarca's  friend,  Laelius.  During  the 
period  of  his  supremacy,  Stefanello  seems  to 


CONCLUSION 


309 


have  asked  Laelius  for  advice.  In  fact,  Laelius' 
friendship  for  the  Colonna  and  his  present 
intimate  relations  with  the  young  Stefano  were 
so  well  known  at  Avignon  that  the  Pope  and 
the  Curia  considered  all  the  rebeUious  acts  of 
the  unratified  senators  as  due  to  the  suggestions 
of  Laelius.  This  information  we  gather  from  a 
letter  of  Petrarca  to  LaeHus  (Fam.,  XV,  i,  from 
Vaucluse),  a  letter  which,  considering  its  histori- 
cal content,  must  be  assigned  to  January  or  to 
the  beginning  of  February,  1353. 

We  must  recollect  that  Cola  was  stUl  under 
guard  at  Avignon,  and  that  the  broken-hearted 
Petrarca  placed  no  more  hopes  in  his  shattered 
idol.  But  now,  on  the  contrary,  the  aUiance 
of  a  Colonna  and  of  LaeHus — a  Roman  noble- 
man by  birth — ^raised  anew  in  the  poet  hopes  of 
a  rejuvenated  Rome  under  the  rule  of  a  native 
Roman.  He  did  not  yield  at  once,  nor  with 
fuU  enthusiasm,  to  this  new  ray  of  hope;  but, 
with  as  much  self-restraint  as  was  possible  for 
his  optimistic  nature,  he  expressed  his  personal 
belief  that  Laehus  had  sufficient  strength  to 
restore  the  Roman  repubHc  provided  only  that 
the  Romans  would  hearken  to  his  counsels,  and 
that  Laelius  would  devote  himself  whole- 
heartedly to  the  welfare  of  the  city.    Petrarca, 


310     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

in  referring  to  the  enemies  of  Laelius,  con- 
tinues as  follows  (Frac,  II,  p.  309): 

As  regards  those  men,  finally,  there  is  no  advice  that 
I  need  give  to  thee.  Thou  knowest  all.  One  thing, 
however,  I  should  wish  that  thou  never  forget,  the 
statement  which  we  have  so  often  heard  from  the  lips 
of  that  venerable  old  man  who,  though  of  opinions 
hostile  to  ours,  was  nevertheless  great  souled  and  of 
wide  experience.  The  saying  is  worthy  of  being  remem- 
bered, not  so  much  for  the  elegance  of  its  diction  as  for 
the  truth  of  its  content.  Thus  was  that  experienced 
man  wont  to  say,  and  excellently  so,  that  the  Roman 
church  ever  loves  the  powerful.  Nothing  could  be 
more  concise,  nothing  more  true. 

Therefore,  O  Romans,  if  you  desire  to  be  great 
among  the  nations  and  (what  is  more  to  be  desired) 
dear  unto  God,  practice  virtue,  love  your  religion,  and 
observe  justice.  Employ  your  ancient  arts:  spare  the 
conquered,  and  subdue  the  proud  [Aeneid,  vi.  853]. 
But,  on  the  contrary,  if  you  desire  to  be  beloved  by  this 
church,  all  that  you  need  is  power,  without  which  (I 
assure  you)  you  will  be  held  in  no  esteem,  it  matters 
not  how  great  your  virtues  be.     With  respect  to  you, 

0  Romans,  I  shall  make  but  one  remark.  Two  are  the 
men  who  in  our  times  have  seized  the  reins  of  govern- 
ment. To  one  of  them  [sc,  Cola  di  Rienzo]  I  wrote 
numerous  letters;  to  the  second  [sc,  Giovanni  Cerroni] 

1  wrote  not  a  word.  The  reason  for  my  course  was 
that  the  former  led  me  to  entertain  great,  though 
premature,  hopes;  while  the  latter  did  not  arouse  in  me 
any  hopes  whatever. 


CONCLUSION  311 

As  for  thee,  Laelius,  if  thou  retain  thy  power,  if  thou 
fear  not  the  menacing  hissing  of  serpents,  there  flash 
through  my  mind  many  and  varied  thoughts  destined 
to  be  brought  forth  in  due  time.  Let  it  suflSce  for  the 
present  to  have  given  to  thee  this  warning:  to  those 
who  enter  upon  this  career,  excess  of  patience  and 
excess  of  zeal  are  alike  sources  of  danger.  Thou  hast 
before  thine  eyes  native  and  at  the  same  time  recent 
examples  of  both.  As  Ovid  says,  thou  wilt  be  safest 
in  the  middle  course  [Met.,  2,  137].  Farewell;  and, 
since  thou  art  a  man,  see  to  it  that  thou  prove  thyself 
a  man. 

Laelius,  however,  was  not  permitted  to  con- 
tinue long  in  his  role  of  mentor.  The  turbu- 
lence of  the  Romans  proved  to  be  the  imdoing  of 
the  senators  whom  they  themselves  had  chosen. 
On  account  of  the  scarcity  of  grain  and  of  the 
high  prices  resulting,  the  Roman  populace 
gathered  in  the  market-place  on  February  15, 
1353,  and  the  slogan  of  rebeUion  was  again 
soimded.  Of  the  senators,  Bertoldo  Orsini 
was  stoned  to  death,  while  the  yoimger  and 
more  vigorous  Stefanello  managed  to  effect  his 
escape  (Greg.,  VI,  338;  Frac,  3,  pp.  340-41). 
Natiurally,  the  Avignonese  candidates  Giovanni 
Orsini  and  Pietro  Sciarra  Colonna  now  ruled 
unmolested. 

Peace,  of  course,  was  bound  to  be  of  short 


312      F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

duration.  On  September  14, 1353,  the  Romans, 
temporarily  wearied  by  their  fratricidal  strife, 
elected  a  Roman,  Francesco  BaronceUi,  second 
Tribmie  of  Rome. 

The  Pontiff  was,  as  ever,  kept  accurately 
informed  of  these  kaleidoscopic  changes  in  the 
City  of  Peter.  From  the  account  of  Ray- 
naldus  {ad  A.  1353,  chap.  5,  p.  574,  col.  i)  it 
becomes  clear  that  Cola's  Hberation  was  a 
direct  consequence  of  BaronceUi's  elevation  to 
the  tribimate. 

On  being  informed  of  these  events  by  Hugo 
Harpaion,  apostolic  internuncio,  the  Pontiff  [sc, 
Innocent  VI]  conceived  the  plan  of  freeing  from  prison 
Cola  di  Rienzo,  who  was  repeatedly  promising  that  he 
would  be  a  most  ardent  champion  for  the  maintenance 
of  the  pontifical  supremacy.  The  Pope  hoped  that 
other  tyrants  would  be  crushed  by  the  agency  of  Cola, 
whose  name  still  had  great  influence  and  was  still  in 
good  repute  with  many.  This  is  what  the  Pope  wrote 
to  the  above-mentioned  Hugo: 

"After  carefully  seeking  a  remedy  for  this  evil,  we 
have  caused  our  beloved  son,  the  noble  Cola  di  Rienzo, 
a  Roman  knight,  to  be  absolved  from  all  the  penalties 
and  the  judgments  by  which  he  had  been  overwhelmed; 
and,  if  God  grant  it,  we  shall  quickly  send  him  as  a 
free  man  to  the  City,  hoping:  that  he  may  have  gained 
understanding  from  his  troubles;  that,  having  utterly 
renounced  the  unjust  and  perverse  endeavors  of  the 
malicious,  he  will  sanely  oppose  his  former  fantastic 


CONCLUSION  313 

innovations,  drawing  upon  his  own  activity  and 
shrewdness  (which  is  indeed  great)  and  also  upon  that 
of  the  inhabitants  and  of  many  nobles  of  said  city  who 
desire  to  live  a  quiet  life  and  to  enhance  the  general 
welfare;  and  hoping,  finally,  that,  with  the  assistance 
and  the  favor  of  God,  he  will  resist  the  absorbing  greed 
and  the  lawless,  injurious  desires  of  certain  leaders. 

"Given  at  Villeneuve  (-les- Avignon),  in  the  Diocese 
of  Avignon,  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  September,  and  in 
the  first  year  [of  our  Pontificate]." 

Here,  at  last,  we  have  the  first  official  men- 
tion of  Cola's  Hberation.  The  suppositions 
and  hypotheses  were  many.  We  have  heard 
Petrarca  asserting  that  Cola  was  likely  to  be 
set  free  because  of  the  strange  rumor  of  his 
being  a  poet.  Raynaldus  {ad  A.  1347,  chap. 
21  end,  p.  448,  col.  2)  says  that  Cola  was  freed 
because  of  his  eloquence,  but  he  does  not 
clearly  state  whether  he  was  thus  absolved  from 
the  charge  of  heresy  or  from  that  of  being  a 
poUtical  rebel.  Later  in  his  annals,  however, 
Raynaldus  says  (ad  A.  1350,  chap.  5  end, 
p.  504,  col.  2):  "How  Cola  was  brought  to 
trial  on  the  charge  of  heresy,  and  how,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  that  he  had  been  condemned  by  two 
cardinal-legates,  he  cleared  himself  of  that 
charge,  was  freed  from  his  imprisonment,  and 
finally  was  slain  and  burned— all  this  will  be 
narrated  in  the  proper  place." 


314     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

The  place  thus  pointed  out  by  anticipation  is 
the  chapter  which  we  have  aheady  quoted,  and 
which  cites  the  papal  brief  to  the  internuncio 
Hugo  Harpaion.  The  underlying  cause  of 
Cola's  freedom,  therefore,  was  not  his  innocence 
of  the  taint  of  heresy,  not  the  papal  forgiveness 
of  his  political  offenses,  but  merely  the  skilful 
maneuvering  of  pontifical  diplomacy.  By  this 
simple  move  of  an  insignificant  and  despised 
pawn,  Innocent  VI  checkmated  the  drastic 
but  aimless  efforts  of  the  Romans.  He  counter- 
balanced the  magic  of  Baroncelli's  title  by 
opposing  to  it  the  former  irresistible  sway  of 
the  first  Tribune,  who  had  sworn  to  uphold 
the  papal  cause;  and  to  the  Spanish  cardinal 
Albomoz,  who  had  been  appointed  on  June  30, 
1353  (Greg.,  VI,  336)  vicar-general  in  Italy  and 
in  the  state  of  the  church,  he  thus  added  a 
source  of  strength  greater  than  that  of  many 
legions. 

It  remained  for  the  Pope  to  acquaint  the 
Romans  of  his  decision  to  set  Cola  at  Hberty. 
It  is  needless  to  state  that  he  would  represent 
things  in  quite  a  different  light.  But  we  shall 
let  the  reader  judge  for  himself.  On  the  very 
next  day  after  writing  to  Hugo  Harpaion,  the 
Pope  wrote  the  following  letter  to  the  Roman 


CONCLUSION  315 

people  (Theiner,  II,  No.  257,  p.  255,  dated 
September  16,  1353). 

Innocent,  Bishop,  to  his  beloved  children  the 
Roman  people,  greetings. 

Although  many  evil  things  concerning  our  beloved 
son,  the  noble  Cola  di  Rienzo,  your  fellow-citizen  and 
knight,  had  been  related  to  our  predecessor  of  blessed 
memory,  Pope  Clement  VI,  and  also  to  ourselves;  and 

although  both  our  venerable  brother  Bertrand, 
cardinal  of  the  Sabina  (then  presbyter-cardinal  of  St. 
Mark),  and  Annibaldo  of  good  memory,  bishop  of 
Tusculum  (then  legate  of  the  apostolic  see)  had 
instituted  some  legal  proceedings  against  him; 

nevertheless,  having  been  raised  to  the  summit  of 
the  highest  apostleship  through  the  assisting  grace  of 
God,  and 

considering  that,  although  said  knight  (who  was  then 
detained  in  our  prisons)  had  transgressed  in  many 
things,  he  had  nevertheless  performed  more  good 
works  worthy  of  reward;  and 

reflecting  that  (according  to  the  past  and  the  present 
trustworthy  reports  of  many)  the  unanimous  will  and 
the  universal  love  of  you  all  most  ardently  demanded 
the  liberation  and  the  restoration  of  Cola  to  the  city, 
and  that,  after  a  long  period,  he  had  been  weakened  by 
the  inconveniences  of  his  prison  chamber  (which, 
however,  was  quite  respectable  and  within  the  walls  of 
the  palace) ;  and 

hoping  confidently  that  he  who,  out  of  love  for  the 
common  weal  and  zeal  for  justice  (which  he  is  said  to 
have  administered  during  his  regime  without  regard  to 


3i6     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

person)  exposed  himself  to  many  dangers  and  to  the 
hatred  of  many  who  eagerly  desired  a  tyranny  and 
your  subjugation  and  who  sought  their  own  gain  in 
your  loss  and  in  that  of  others — confidently  hoping,  we 
say,  that  such  a  man  will  curb  with  the  bit  of  justice 
their  criminal  appetites,  and  that,  having  stifled  all 
hatred  and  rancor,  he  will  (with  the  favor  of  God  and 
with  our  aid)  cause  you  and  your  compatriots  to  enjoy 
the  prayed-for  quiet  and  peace, 

we,  therefore,  have  caused  him  to  be  absolved  from 
all  the  judgments  and  the  penalties  by  which  he  had 
been  overwhelmed,  and  we  have  decided  that  he  should 
be  sent  back  to  you  a  free  man. 

Therefore  we  request  and  urge  you  all,  earnestly 
soliciting  you  to  aid  the  above-mentioned  knight, 
whom  you  have  so  eagerly  sought,  whom  you  desire  to 
welcome  joyfully,  and  who,  with  the  grace  of  God,  will 
strengthen  your  weakness  and  that  of  the  state. 

We  solicit  you  to  aid  him  unanimously,  with  timely 
and  effectual  good-will,  in  restoring  your  fallen  con- 
ditions, in  directing  them  toward  a  better  state,  and  in 
enlarging  your  republic — objects  which  he  himself  is 
said  to  be  especially  desirous  of  attaining.  We  beg  of 
you  to  rival  with  your  aid  the  wisdom  of  his  plans,  so 
that  you  may  check  the  ravenousness  of  your  powerful 
fellow-citizens  and  neighbors  who  are  gnawing  your 
sides  both  within  and  without  the  city,  and  so  that  you 
may  break  the  lifted  horns  of  the  proud. 

Given  at  Villeneuve  (-les- Avignon),  in  the  Diocese  of 
Avignon,  on  the  sixteenth  day  of  September,  and  in  the 
first  year  of  our  Pontificate. 


CONCLUSION  317 

From  this  letter  it  is  evident  that  the  Roman 
people  had  asked  for  Cola's  freedom  and  also 
for  his  return — imless  the  passage  in  question 
is  mere  rhetoric  on  the  part  of  the  apostolic 
secretary.  Petrarca's  last  letter  to  the  Romans, 
consequently,  was  not  altogether  in  vain.  On 
September  24,  1353,  the  sum  of  200  florins  for 
traveling  expenses  was  given  to  Cola  (Faucon, 
op.  ciL,  p.  58,  n.  i).  He  left  Avignon  on  that 
day  in  order  to  overtake  Albomoz,  who  must 
have  left  in  the  first  half  of  August.  Indeed, 
as  early  as  September  14,  1353,  Albomoz  had 
entered  Milan,  and  had  been  met  by  Petrarca 
and  by  Giovanni  Visconti.  On  this  occasion 
Galeazzo  saved  Petrarca's  life,  when  the  latter's 
horse  was  on  the  point  of  throwing  him  violently 
to  the  groimd  (Frac,  i,  pp.  180-81;  2,  p.  240). 

In  November,  1353,  BaronceUi  fled,  and 
Cardinal  Albomoz  took  possession  of  the  city 
(Greg.,  VI,  358).  It  was  not  imtfl  August  i, 
1354 — the  seventh  anniversary  of  Cola's  knight- 
hood, of  the  famous  citation,  and  of  the  procla- 
mation of  Rome  as  the  Capital  of  the  world — 
it  was  not  until  that  fateful  date  that  Cola 
re-entered  the  Urbs,  but  in  the  character  of 
senator  and  ruling  in  the  name  of  Innocent  VI. 
Only  sixty-nine  days  later,  on  October  8,  1354, 


3i8     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

the  sword  of  Cecco  del  Vecchio  put  an  end  to 
the  life  of  Cola  di  Rienzo. 

The  mangled  and  headless  corpse  was  dragged  from 
the  Capitol  to  the  Colonna  quarter,  and  was  hanged 
outside  a  house  close  to  S.  Marcello.  Two  days  the 
appalling  figure  remained;  once  in  life  the  idol  of 
Rome,  now  the  target  for  the  stones  of  street  boys. 
By  command  of  Jugvu-tha  and  Sciarretta  Colonna,  the 
remains  of  the  Tribunus  Augustus  were  burnt  by  the 
Jews  on  the  third  day,  on  a  heap  of  dry  thistles  in  the 
Mausoleum  of  Augustus.  The  scene  of  the  last  act  of 
this  curious  tragedy  had  been  specially  chosen  in 
mockery  of  Cola's  pompous  ideas  concerning  antiquity. 
His  ashes  were  scattered  like  those  of  Arnold  of  Brescia 
(Greg.,  VI,  373). 

About  one  month  and  a  half  after  this 
tragedy,  Petrarca,  in  addressing  Charles  IV, 
emperor  of  the  Holy  Roman  Empire,  reproached 
him  for  delaying  his  descent  into  Italy,  and 
cites  Cola's  successes  as  an  example  of  what 
would  be  possible  for  the  rightful  emperor. 
These  are  his  words  {Fam.,  XVIII,  i,  Novem- 
ber 23,  1354,  Frac,  II,  pp.  463-64). 

Would  not  thy  mere  name,  together  with  the  assis- 
tance of  the  few  good  men  who  still  love  virtue  and  the 
Empire,  easily  bring  to  a  successful  close  any  struggle 
against  sluggish  magnificence  and  unarmed  pride? 
Dost  thou  wish  me  to  prove  and  to  demonstrate  to  thee 
that  things  are  as  I  say  ?    Well,  then.    Very  recently 


CONCLUSION 


319 


one  of  the  lowly  plebeians  rose  to  power.  He  was  not 
a  Roman  king,  nor  a  consul,  nor  a  patrician.  He  was 
a  Roman  citizen  who  was  scarcely  known — one  who 
was  not  illustrious  because  of  the  glory  and  the  images 
of  distinguished  ancestors,  nor  indeed  because  of  any 
virtues  of  his  own  that  had  as  yet  been  manifested. 
Nevertheless  he  proclaimed  himself  the  champion  of 
Roman  liberty.  Dazzling  declaration  of  an  obscure 
person! 

Immediately  and  eagerly  (as  thou  knowest)  Tuscany 
joined  hands  with  him,  and  hearkened  imto  his  orders. 
Gradually  all  Italy  followed  her  example;  and  soon 
Europe,  aye  the  entire  world  was  astir.  But  what 
need  of  many  details?  We  have  not  read  of  these 
events,  we  have  witnessed  them  with  our  own  eyes. 
Justice  and  peace  seemed  to  have  returned  in  company 
with  their  handmaidens — genial  confidence  and  tran- 
quil ease.  In  fine,  traces  of  the  golden  age  reappeared. 
In  the  very  bloom  of  prosperity,  however,  he  submitted 
to  the  counsels  of  another.  I  do  not  desire  to  blame 
either  him  or  that  other.  I  neither  condemn  nor 
acquit;  I  am  not  the  judge,  and  I  shall  keep  my 
opinions  to  myself.  He  had  assumed  the  title  of 
Tribune,  the  lowliest  among  the  Roman  offices.  And 
if  the  name  of  Tribune  was  able  to  accomplish  so  much, 
what  is  impossible  for  one  boasting  the  title  of  Caesar  ? 

The  next  mention  of  Cola  which  Petrarca 
makes  is  to  be  found  in  his  work  De  Remediis, 
written  between  the  years  1358  and  1366.  In 
Book  I,   Dialogue  89,  entitled  "On  coming 


320     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

forth  from  prison,"  De  carceris  exitu,  we  find 
the  following  strange  conversation,  put  into 
the  mouths  of  the  usual  two  characters,  Joy 
and  Reason  {op.  cit.,  p.  243): 

Joy:  I  rejoice  at  having  come  forth  from  prison. 

Reason:  Only  recently  thou  didst  rejoice  at  having 
entered  the  haven,  now  thou  rejoicest  at  leaving  it. 
The  prison  has  been  a  haven  to  many;  to  many  it  has 
been  a  place  of  refuge,  to  many  a  source  of  safety.  The 
prison  hath  spared  in  chains  many  who  were  destined  to 
perish  when  restored  to  liberty.  That  which  is  bound 
fast  and  is  placed  under  lock  and  key  is  more  carefully 
preserved.  Men,  in  their  blindness,  know  not  what  is 
to  their  best  advantage,  and  consequently  they  keenly 
desire  their  own  evil;  and  when  they  have  attained  it, 
they  rejoice  at  a  thing  over  which  they  will  soon 
grieve.  That  thou  mayest  not  have  far  to  seek,  thou 
didst  recently  witness  the  spirited  and  noble  (rather 
than  persevering)  endeavors  of  that  man  [sc,  Cola  di 
Rienzo]  who,  in  a  time  of  adversity,  dared  to  proclaim 
himself  the  defender  of  the  Roman  republic,  taking 
unto  himself  the  title  of  Tribune.  But  shortly  fortune 
changed.  Expelled  from  the  city,  he  was  imprisoned 
first  by  the  Emperor  of  the  Romans  [sc,  Charles  IV] 
and  then  by  the  Pope  [sc,  Clement  VI].  In  each  case 
he  was  treated  both  well  and  honorably.  Unluckily  he 
was  set  free;  and  he  was  not  merely  slain,  but  indeed  he 
was  mangled  by  the  swords  of  his  enemies.  I  believe 
that  in  his  dying  moments  he  must  have  sighed  for  the 
safety  of  his  former  prison. 


CONCLUSION 


321 


The  last  mention  of  Cola  in  Petrarca's  ex- 
tant writings  occurs  in  his  Invediva  in  Galium, 
the  fiery  invective  which  the  poet  wrote  against 
the  monk  Jean  de  Hesdin,  who  had  defended 
the  establishment  of  the  Papal  See  outside  of 
Italy.  Though  this  answer  was  written  in 
1371  or  1372,  and  therefore  but  shortly  before 
Petrarca's  death  in  1374,  it  reveals  all  the  vigor 
of  his  youth,  and  it  furthermore  proves  the 
undiminished  sway  wielded  over  him  by  memo- 
ries of  his  idealized  Cola.  We  cite  from  the 
Invediva  (Basle  ed.  of  1581,  p.  1071): 

And  yet  I  do  not  speak  blasphemy  (as  he  has  done), 
but  something  closely  akin  to  blasphemy,  when  I  say 
that  he  [sc,  Jean  de  Hesdin]  rends  the  Holy  City  [sc, 
Rome]  with  his  profane  abuse.  How  great  is  the 
audacity  of  slaves!  How  great  is  their  impudence, 
when  they  have  once  escaped  from  the  fetters  of  their 
masters!  Incapable  of  avenging  themselves  otherwise, 
they  war  against  their  former  masters  with  curses  and 
maledictions,  pouring  the  wrath  of  their  ulcerous  souls 
forth  upon  the  winds.  They  bark  in  their  fear,  like 
unto  feeble  curs.  This  barbarian  makes  mention  of 
the  ancient  slavery  of  his  race;  and,  though  his  neck 
be  still  callous  from  the  Roman  yoke,  like  a  runaway 
slave  does  he  rail  at  his  mistress  from  afar  and  quiver- 
ing with  fear.  If  Omnipotent  God  were  to  grant  peace 
and  brotherly  concord  to  the  sons  of  Rome — to  her 
barons,  I  say — and  if  Rome  were  aided  (as  formerly) 


322     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

by  the  united  strength  of  the  Italians,  how  quickly  and 
how  easily  would  she  suppress  the  rebellious  barbarians 
and  impose  upon  them  that  same  yoke  of  ancient  days! 
Had  this  been  unknown  heretofore,  it  became  clearly 
manifest  recently,  when  a  single  man  of  the  most 
obscure  origin  and  not  possessed  of  riches — a  man  who 
(as  experience  proved)  was  endowed  with  greater  spirit 
than  constancy,  dared  to  buttress  the  Republic  with 
his  weak  shoulders,  and  to  assume  the  defense  of  the 
tottering  empire.  How  soon  was  all  Italy  aroused; 
how  great  did  the  fear  and  the  fame  of  the  Roman  name 
spread  to  the  furthermost  countries  of  the  earth !  And 
with  how  much  greater  authority  would  it  have  spread, 
were  it  as  easy  to  persevere  as  it  is  to  make  a  beginning. 
I  was  then  in  Gaul,  and  I  know  right  well  what  I  heard, 
and  what  I  saw,  and  what  I  read  in  the  words  and  the 
eyes  of  those  who  were  considered  the  greatest  of  men. 
They  would  deny  it  now,  perhaps,  for  it  is  extremely 
easy  to  deny  fear  when  its  cause  no  longer  exists. 
Then,  however,  consternation  had  filled  every  corner, 
so  true  is  it  that  Rome  is  still  something.  But  no  more 
of  this,  lest  I  drive  my  barbarian  to  the  fear  of  despair 
as  he  bitterly  reflects  upon  what  Italy  really  is,  and 
upon  the  uncivilized  state  of  his  own  country 

To  the  last,  then,  Petrarca  regarded  Cola's 
uprising  with  feelings  of  unabating  kindness. 
Petrarca  has  been  accused,  and  not  once  merely, 
of  having  followed  now  this  poHcy,  now  that. 
We  frankly  acknowledge  that  he  wrote  eulogis- 
tic epistles  to  King  Robert,  the  great  champion 


CONCLUSION  323 

of  the  Guelph  cause  in  Italy;  that  he  addressed 
metrical  compositions  to  Benedict  XII  and  to 
Clement  VI,  urging  upon  both  the  restoration 
of  the  Papal  See  to  the  City  by  the  River;  that 
he  surrendered  himself  heart  and  soul  to  Cola; 
that  he  afterward  addressed  with  equal  vigor 
and  persistency  Emperor  Charles  IV;  and  that 
he  finally  turned  once  again  to  Pope  Urban  V. 
We  acknowledge  all  this.  But  back  of  it  aU, 
actuating  and  giving  strength  to  his  every  word, 
upHfting  him  in  the  hour  of  crushing  dis- 
appointment, pouring  balm  upon  his  wounded 
heart,  and  stirring  ever  new  hopes  in  his  respon- 
sive soul,  we  discern  the  one  great  cause  and 
sustaining  faith  of  Petrarca's  existence,  a  creed 
that  was  summed  up  in  the  single  name  Rome. 
The  deep  and  concentrated  studies  of  the 
Father  of  Humanism  had  first  awakened  in 
Petrarca  a  belief  in  the  rebirth  of  an  Augustan 
Rome.  The  distracted  and  mangled  condition 
of  Itaha's  fair  body  had  caused  this  belief  to 
blossom  forth  into  an  overpowering  and  all- 
mastering  passion.  Whether  addressing  Cola 
the  Tribune  or  Robert  the  King,  whether 
addressing  the  Venetian  or  the  Genoese  Doge, 
whether  addressing  popes  or  emperors,  the  one 
thought  supreme  in  Petrarca's  mind  was  the 


324     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

establishment  of  peace  and  of  harmony  among 
the  Itahc  states,  and  a  hegemony  under  the 
leadership  of  Rome.  He  longed  for  a  renewal 
of  the  golden  days,  of  the  miiversal  esteem  and 
veneration  for  Rome,  of  the  days  when  the  City 
of  the  Seven  Hills  centered  within  its  walls  the 
grandeur  and  the  glory  of  human  achievements. 
Petrarca  was  neither  a  Guelph  nor  a  Ghi- 
belline;  neither  a  Florentine  nor  a  Roman; 
neither  a  bigoted  churchman  nor  a  Protestant 
reformer.  He  was,  in  a  word,  an  ItaHan 
patriot,  an  Italian  bom  five  centuries  ahead  of 
the  times;  a  man  who,  with  the  prophetic 
instinct  of  the  bard,  conceived  an  ideal  which 
his  imaginative  nature  could  not  bring  to  a 
practical  consummation.  He  was  consequently 
doomed  to  everlasting  disappointment  in  his 
intercourse  with  the  mighty  of  the  earth,  a 
disappointment  to  which  he  fortimately  gave 
vent  in  that  noblest  and  most  glorious  of  all 
his  Canzoni,  Italia  mia,  benche'l  parlar  sia 
indarno,  uttering  words  that  were  destined  to 
become  the  raUying-cry  of  generations  of 
patriotic  Italians. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Adorni,  Giuseppe.    See  Rossetti. 

Africa.  Africa  Francisci  Petrarchae  nunc  primum 
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AvENA,  Antonio.  II  Bucolicum  Carmen  e  i  suoi  com- 
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Baldelli,  Giovan  Battista  (Boni).  Del  Petrarca  e 
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Berlan,  Francesco.  Parma  liberata  dal  giogo  di 
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325 


326     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

Carducci,  Giosue.  Rime  di  Francesco  Petrarca  sopra 
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Christophe,  Jean  Baptiste.  Histoire  de  la  PapautS 
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CiPOLLA,  Carlo.  Sui  motivi  del  ritorno  di  Francesco 
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CoNiNGTON,  John.  The  Aeneid  of  Vergil.  Trans- 
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CosENZA,  Mario  E.  Petrarch's  Letters  to  Classical 
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Dacre,  Lady.    See  The  Sonnets,  etc. 

De  Sade,  Jac.  F.  P.  A.  Memoires  pour  la  vie  de 
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1764-67. 

Develay,  Victor.  Petrarque:  Lettres  d.  Rienzi.  Paris: 
Librairie  des  Bibliophiles,  1885. 

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brairie des  Bibliophiles,  1885. 

Pitrarque:    Eglogues.     Paris:    Librairie  des 


Bibliophiles,  1891. 

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FiLiPPiNi,  F.    Cola  di  Rienzo  e  la  Curia  Avignonese. 

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filosofia    e    critica.    Napoli:     Domenico    Morano, 

1876.     {La  filosofia  del  Petrarca,  pp.  101-25;    La 

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Lettere  Senili  di  F.  P.    Volgarizzate  e  dichiarate 


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Gabreelli,  Annibale.  Epistolario  di  Cola  di  Rienzo. 
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330     F.  PETRARCA  AND  COLA  DI  RIENZO 

London:  Bohn's  Illustrated  Library,  1893.  (Spirto 
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Vita  Nicolai  Laurentii  {sive  di  Cola  di  Rienzo),  Trihuni 
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omnia  Latio  donavit  Petrus  Hercules  Gkerardius. 
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ZuMBiNi,  BuoNAVENTURA.  Studi  sul  Pctrarca. 
Firenze:  Succ.  Le  Monnier,  1895. 


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